


What's Going On

by queens_deans



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, F/M, Oral Sex, Past Abuse, Rough Sex, Self-Harm, Sex, Smoking, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2018-06-01 11:37:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 41,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6517030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queens_deans/pseuds/queens_deans
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daryl had never spoken to Beth Greene before. She was just a kid. But when she asks him for a favor, he realizes he might have been wrong about her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. "What do you want?"

Beth stepped carefully. Her eyes swung from the angel wings in front of her to the ground beneath her in rapid succession. Just like the couple times she had driven a car. She thinks now, of Shaun’s blonde hair, ruffled by the wind, and his laugh as she gripped the wheel with all her might. Her eyes had darted between the speedometer and the road and him until she was dizzy, and she relented the driver’s seat to him.  
She hadn’t said a single word to Daryl in the last month. She wanted to ask if they could stop for a moment, but she didn’t want to break her record. He hadn’t spoken to her either. Spoken at her, perhaps. When he pulled up next to her on that ridiculous bike he hadn’t been speaking to her, he just stared straight ahead and said the words “get on”. For a millisecond she hadn’t wanted to. She had forgotten for a moment the chaos around her, that the governor had just taken a katana to her father’s neck. For a millisecond she had thought only of the last month, and the enduring coldness and emptiness and anger she was feeling. The heartbroken eighteen year old wanted to spit at him for, well, breaking her heart. But then the grown woman realized he was her only chance of escape, and climbed on the bike, her chest flush against those angel wings.  
It didn’t start as a friendship, the way it had started with Jimmy. But Beth had been constantly startled by the similarities between Jimmy and Daryl. Jimmy had been just a boy, and Daryl was a man, that she was certain of. But his emotional maturity was stunted beyond belief, and Beth had even found herself wishing he had been more like the boy she loved first.  
That June had been unbearably hot, and Beth sat red as a lobster under the Georgia sun when he approached her for the first time.  
“Caught a deer if you want some,” he mumbled, his voice comparable to a low growl. He held out a plate with a meager portion of meat to the stick-thin blonde girl, unwilling to let on how much he wanted her to take it. Daryl wasn’t a man of many words, but he was extremely perceptive. Beth wasn’t the spoiled girl a lot of people seemed to think she was. She practically lived to serve the people around her, and in the process he constantly observed her forgetting to care for herself.  
Beth looked over her shoulder at him, squinting against the sun. “You caught a deer? Where?”  
“Way out there. Been trackin’ it a lil over a week.”  
“Well, shit,” she laughed, taking the plate from him. “We’d be dead in a day without you Mr. Dixon.”  
He rubbed his neck absently, not wanting to say anything. It was probably true, but he wasn’t one to boast, and he had never been too good at taking praise.  
“Hey,” she whispered, looking around quickly, “You think you could do me a favor?”  
“A favor?”  
“Yeah. I’ll find a way to repay you. Think of it more like a deal.”  
“Depends on what it is,” Daryl looked down at her scrupulously. She looked small on her patch of grass, like she should be putting together a crown of dandelions like a little girl. “Is it gonna get me in trouble with your daddy?”  
“I don’t think so…”  
“Alright,” he relented, “What do you want?”  
“Heard you were workin on the fence with Zach tonight,” she paused, and he swore he could see a blush beneath her already pink cheeks. “I just wondered if you could ask him about me or somethin’,” she paused again and looked up at him, “I know we ain’t friends or nuthin’ but I feel like you aren’t the type to tease me about it or stick your nose in it.”  
He felt a tightening in his chest. He didn’t know, but it was an indication of how drastically his life would be changing soon enough. “You’re right. I ain’t the type to pry. But I also ain’t the type to pass love notes for a coupla love-struck kids.”  
“Yeah well I ain’t a kid,” Beth countered after a beat, “And I’m getting a lil tired of everyone thinking so.”  
“Askin me to talk to yer crush ain’t exactly helping.”  
“Thought you weren’t the type to tease?”  
“I never said,” he held back a smile, the way he always did around people, enjoying the banter between them, “Said I weren’t the type to stick my nose in it.”  
“If you ain’t willing just say no.”  
Daryl paused. He certainly wasn’t willing. The idea of him gossiping with Zach and Beth made his stomach turn. But something about her big blue eyes, pleading with him, made him feel like denying her a little bit of fun would be sacrilegious.  
“I’m willing,” he said, taking a couple steps backward, “But it better be one hell of a payback.”  
She smiled over her shoulder at him and he quickly turned away and took off towards the prison. Daryl felt strange. He had never really connected with anyone in the group other than Carol. And she always seemed to want to fix him or help him or something. That’s what Carol did. That’s what she was trying to do with Karen and Dave. Besides, she was gone now, and all he had was the bare camaraderie between him and Rick. They worked together, but he didn’t feel that close to Rick. Rick had his own family, and Daryl just had himself. But talking to Beth, joking with her, had felt all too easy.  
Later that night, he eyed the stout teenage boy just down the fence from him. Now, Daryl could hardly think with any kind of thought process similar to a teenage girl’s, but he couldn’t see what about Zach Beth could be attracted to. He was about the same height as her, and a little soft around the edges. He seemed to be no more than average intelligence, but Daryl had always thought he was a little cocky.  
“Hey Zach,” Daryl called, then turned to shove a knife through the eye of the closest walker.  
“Yeah man?” Zach called back without turning to look at Daryl.  
“How old are you?”  
“Uh, about 19,” he stopped to think for a moment, “I’ll be 20 soon.”  
“Really?” Daryl asked in disbelief.  
“Yeah,” Zach finally turned to give Daryl a somewhat sour look, “Why are you so surprised? And why do you even want to know?”  
“Just thought there was something goin on with you and that Beth girl,” Daryl said nonchalantly, “And she’s like, sixteen.”  
“Beth is 18, dude,” Zach said with a chuckle, “It ain’t like it matters no more. There ain’t no age of consent anymore.”  
“Yeah but her daddy’d kick your ass into Wednesday if you laid a hand on her.”  
“I’ll steer clear of her daddy then,” the boy said. They locked eyes for a moment, and Zach winked at Daryl. “If you know what I mean.”  
Daryl stopped for a moment, his knife still stuck into a walker’s skull. What did he mean? Beth made it sound like she just wanted to know if he liked her. He assumed nothing had happened between them. He didn’t have to think much longer, because Zach piped up a second later.  
“I ain’t the type to brag, but there definitely is something going on with me and that Beth girl.” He said smugly, continuing to jam his piece of rebar into the walkers. “She’s a peach ain’t she?”  
Daryl grunted in response. His brain went a little fuzzy, and he had absolutely no way to respond to Zach’s proclamation. Should he say that he hadn’t noticed, that he shouldn’t notice? Beth was old enough for Daryl to at least look at. Wasn’t she? He shook his head, and focused on the walkers. He could hear Zach blabbering on about Beth, but he didn’t listen.


	2. "God, you talk like a teenage boy"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth confronts Daryl, and he learns a little bit more about her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We get the tiniest glimpse of smut (already!) in this chapter. A lot of people tell me I have my characters jump into bed with each other too fast, but I've never been one for a slow burn.

Beth had been subtly looking for Daryl all day, but he didn’t seem to be anywhere. She finished folding the cloth diaper over Judith’s midsection and pinned it in place. Just as she lifted the infant into her arms, she heard someone going up the metal stairs just outside of her cell. She didn’t want to run out into the hallway, or she’d seem too eager, but Daryl was one of the only people who lived in the upper cells. She counted to ten, and then rose from her kneeling position to follow whoever it was.  
Sure enough, as she came out of her cell, she saw Daryl disappear into his own. He pulled the curtain on the inside closed for privacy, but she didn’t mind it. When she reached his cell, she threw it open and stepped inside. It was bare, unlike hers, which was covered in little trinkets people had given her and pictures she had managed to save when the farm fell. His crossbow was the only decoration, sitting resolutely on the top bunk.  
“The hell you doin just bargin in here?” Daryl said. It was an angry sentence, but he said it quietly and calmly. It caused a chill to run up Beth’s spine.  
“Just wanted to talk to you,” she said simply, adjusting Judith on her hip.  
“Coulda been changin or somethin…” Daryl grumbled as he stood up from the bottom bunk. He was taller than her. Most people weren’t. She swallowed hard.  
“I decided to take my chances,” she paused, “Sides it ain’t nothin I ain’t seen before.”  
Daryl let out a chuckle. “Hell if I don’t already know that. Hear you been tartin it up around our lil community.”  
“What?” Beth felt heat rise into her cheeks. She’d always been prone to blushing, and the embarrassment she felt over that only caused her cheeks to grow even redder.  
“Oh, Zach told me all about what a peach you are,” he shook his head at her, “Shoulda told me straight up you wanted ta know if he was ever gonna call. He don’t seem like the type to buy the cow once he’s got the milk.”  
“Jesus”, Beth sighed, setting Judith down on the bottom bunk of Daryl’s bunk bed. “It was just one time. And we barely did anything. Just like a boy to cream his pants over a lil heavy pettin.”  
“Excuse me?” Daryl scoffed. His heart began pounding. He hadn’t expected Beth to be so straightforward. Or vulgar for that matter.  
“I just wanted to know what he would say if you asked,” Beth replied. “Wanted to know if he was goin around tellin everyone about the one time I touched him. Over the goddam pants too.” She shook her head, and a couple blonde curls came loose from her ponytail.  
Daryl stood staring at her for a moment. She looked up and held his gaze for a moment.  
“I uh,” Daryl coughed, “I don’t think it’s really...appropriate for you to talk about this with me.”  
“What, you gonna cream your pants too?” She quirked an eyebrow at him.  
“God you talk like a fuckin teenage boy,” Daryl spit, “Didn’t yer daddy tell you not to say stuff like that?”  
“My daddy never told me a thing,” she said plainly, and looked up at him, “Up until the day the dead started poppin up he was a shit dad. Drinkin all the time. He taught Maggie wrong and right when she was little but I was a bit of a mistake. My mamma was the one who cared about me and she didn’t really mind.”  
Daryl paused for a moment, unsure of how to proceed. He had never heard those things about Herschel, and he knew next to nothing about Beth’s mom.  
“Your ma didn’t care if you said filthy things?” He asked after a moment.  
“Nah,” Beth looked at Judith when she squalled for a second, “It ain’t like she encouraged me to, and I wouldn’t say em to her face but she didn’t mind a lil language. There’s worse things to do than cuss.”  
Daryl supposed that was true. He watched Beth for a moment. She was 18. Surely it was alright for him to notice how she looked. He wasn’t going to go around spouting off about it like that kid Zach, but he could appreciate her. She was tall, something he’d always liked in a woman, and even though she was small she had clearly defined muscles and he’d seen her run faster than he thought possible. And her eyes, he swore they were as big and blue as the Georgia sky. She looked up again suddenly, and caught his eye.  
“What?”  
“You’re 18.” Daryl said, “At least that’s what Zach said. I dunno I just thought you were like, 16.”  
“Told you I ain’t no kid,” she said with a smile. “Why’s that matter anyway?”  
“Just...you’re an adult…” Daryl said, trying to gather his thoughts, “I didn’t know,” he paused, and after a moment, said, “I’m sorry I called you a kid. That probably sucks, people thinkin bout you like that all the time.”  
“It’s alright,” Beth said, her smile gone, “I don’t look as old as I am.”  
“Now that I know it makes sense. You don’t look like a kid Beth”  
Beth stood very still. She wanted to ask him something, but wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer.  
Beth had always liked older men. Even when Maggie had posters of teen stars, Beth had preferred men, like David Beckham. When she had first met Daryl, she had thought he was handsome. Now he could use a haircut, but if he showed any interest in her, she wouldn’t hesitate to act. There wasn’t anything wrong with liking sex, and she was apt to get it from boys like Jimmy or Zach, but they always seemed to want to hang around and Beth was too nice to say no. Maybe Daryl would be willing to invest in something casual.  
“Hey Daryl?” She finally said, “Do you think….am I attractive to you?”  
Daryl wasn’t sure how to respond. He had just now even started thinking about her, he had always just dismissed her as being too young. “I guess…” he said quietly after a moment.  
“You guess?” Beth narrowed her eyes, “Stellar reviews.” She bent down to grab Judith so she could leave, but Daryl grabbed her elbow suddenly. She snapped her head up to fix him with a glare, but it withered under the fierce look in his eyes.  
“I didn’t mean it like that dammit,” he hissed, and she was suddenly aware of the close proximity of their faces. He let go of her arm and she stood upright to face him again, but they stood very close now.  
“What did you mean then?” She asked, her throat tight with embarrassment.  
“I ain’t known you long, alright?” He replied, “And it ain’t like I been thinking about you. I thought you were just a kid.”  
“What about now?”  
“I don’t know. I’m still old enough to be your dad, girl.”  
“Some people are into that kinda thing…” she said quietly.  
Jesus christ. Daryl felt like the wind had been knocked out of his chest. Just yesterday he had been watching this girl playing with Carl, reading stories to the other kids. And now she was practically propositioning him. He wondered if she was this bold with everyone else. He decided no, because up until this point she had only appeared to him as a shy, sweet girl.  
“Get out of here girl,” Daryl sighed. He felt bad because he knew that probably wasn’t the response she had been looking for, but it wasn’t like he was going to abandon all his reservations and ravage her right here, while Judith sat on his bed.  
“I was already on my way old man” Beth replied, as she scooped up the baby and practically ran out of the room without looking at him once.

Beth had incredible self-preservation. She never really let people know what she was thinking about, and she knew they were all under the impression that she was just a sweet little farm girl. The incident with Daryl jarred her beyond words because, other than her suicide attempt, she was always watching her words and keeping herself in check. She thought he was someone she could speak straight with, she got that impression from him immediately, but he had reacted just the way anyone else would. That was what really disappointed her.   
She didn’t care if he thought she was hot or whatever, but she had thought maybe through their recent interactions, they would become friends at the very least. She liked talking with him. He was quiet too, but she could tell he had something darker going on underneath. Perhaps it was a little naive, but she thought she could find a sort of kindred spirit in him.  
Over the next couple weeks, they reverted back into the relationship they’d had before, meaning they never spoke and rarely acknowledged eachother. Beth started things up with Zach again, if only to have a bit of distraction from the boredom of her everyday. It might have been cruel to lead him on, but she didn’t particularly feel like being alone either.   
There was one time, when they snuck down to the showers together, and he was thrusting into her sloppily, that she couldn’t help but think of Daryl. She imagined his hands pinning her wrists down, his chiseled midsection colliding with hers. But the moment was ruined when Zach finished before she was even close to climax of course, and she shooed him away. When he finally left, a wounded look in his eyes, she went to work on herself. She was a master at pleasuring herself. All her friends had thought touching themselves was somehow dirty or gross, and Beth had always laughed along. But at night, she could barely hear the swell of cicadas over her harsh breathing as she fiddle with her clit.   
She pushed one and then two fingers deep into her wet folds, and as she came, she let her lips quietly mouth his name. Over and over. Daryl. Daryl. Daryl.   
She lay back on the cold tile. She knew she would be obsessed with the idea of fucking Daryl, simply because he had practically rejected her. That was just how her mind worked. But she was cunning, and she had seen the way he looked at her. She could make him want her enough to forgo whatever it was that was holding him back. She got up and turned on the shower. As the water bore down on her, she came up with a plan of attack.


	3. "I don't want nothin' serious"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth puts her plan into action, and of course, Daryl falls right in line.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I teased you with smut a little last time but now you get it for real (; Enjoy!

Daryl was skinning a rabbit when Beth finally spoke to him. It had been hard for him, just because he really was desperate for a little bit of human companionship. It had never been like this before, when he had Carol or even Merle to fall back on. Now he was depending on a fucking girl for a little bit of contact.  
She was wearing a pair of heart-shaped sunglasses Maggie had given her and a pair of cowboy boots that made Daryl’s redneck heart pound. Not to mention those tiny, tiny shorts. He had a feeling she’d dressed that way on purpose.  
“Hey you,” she said as she approached, her hands clasped behind her and a spring in her step.  
“What is it that you want this time?” He asked, but when he saw her stop cold, he quickly said, “I’m just playin with you girl.”  
“Oh….” she didn’t come any closer though, and he kicked himself in his head, “I was just wonderin if you needed any help or somethin. I remembered that I still owe you for the Zach thing.” She rocked from foot to foot, and he wondered for a moment if she was nervous. Or maybe this was the facade she obviously put on for everyone else.   
“Not right this second but I guess I will eventually,” he said, looking up from the rabbit for a second, “How about you take my guard shift tonight?”  
“Yeah that seems fair,” Beth said in a happy voice, but he could tell she was disappointed.  
For a fleeting second he thought that maybe he should have asked her to suck him off. But as soon as that thought came into his head he thrust it away. Where had all of these thoughts come from? It reminded him of Merle, and how the first time he had seen Beth, he’d made an extremely crude gesture to Daryl as she walked away. When did he become as bad as Merle?  
“Just let me know if you ever need anything else,” she sang mischievously, and turned on her heel to hurry away.  
Daryl stared at her as she walked away, noting the flounce in her step. What a fucking showoff, he thought to himself. He wondered how long he’d be able to play this absurd game of cat and mouse. Even worse yet, he wasn’t really sure which one he was supposed to be.   
Beth broke into a run as she rounded the corner. This was absolutely perfect. It was almost better than what she was hoping for. Of course it wasn’t. Her plan of getting him to take her on a run and then pouncing on him the way Maggie had done Glenn was obviously fool-proof. I mean, they were married. But now, all night, Daryl would be thinking about her all alone in that watch tower, wearing the hot little outfit she had constructed this morning. If he could resist that there was no hope for Beth, and she vowed she would give up the chase.

 

Daryl lay in his bunk, cursing every god of every religion as well as himself. Why had he suggested she take his guard duty? Sure, he knew she was more than capable, he had seen her take down walkers on the road, but he still didn’t like the idea of her up there all alone.   
And if he was completely honest he couldn’t help but think of her ass as she walked away from him earlier. He had seen her on her way out to the watchtower, and she was still wearing those damn shorts.   
He swore to himself and sat up in bed. He sat on the edge of his mattress for a moment, still battling with himself inwardly. He was just going to go out there and tell her to go on ahead inside. That was it. No funny business, just looking out for her. He would get himself a good look at her and if everything was quiet maybe he’d jerk himself off. Just to relieve the tension.  
He walked out into the moonlight, but it seemed even hotter than it had been during the day. The air was thick with humidity and the sound of cicadas, and he was sweating by the time he reached the top of the tower. When he opened the door though, he was greeted by the sound of soft snoring. Beth was sitting in the swivel chair, her chin touching her chest as she slept soundly. He just stared at her for a moment, taking in her pretty blonde hair and smooth white skin, before he tapped her on the shoulder.  
“Beth,” he said gruffly, “C’mon wake up now.”  
She opened one eye at a time and looked up at him, her eyes still glazed over from sleep. Then, after a moment, her mouth broke into a wide grin and she started chuckling to herself.  
“I was starting to think you’d never show up,” she stretched, “And when you do, here I am sleeping.”  
“What are you talkin bout girl?”  
“I was waiting for you,” she replied sweetly, and flashed him the most innocent look she could muster while her blood boiled under her skin.  
“Aw fuck,” Daryl breathed. And then it was too much for him. Just knowing she was out here thinking about the same exact thing as him drove him over the edge. His hands went beneath her thighs and he yanked up out of the chair until her chest was flush against his. He expected her to squeal or cry out in surprise the way most women did when you picked them up but she was silent, as if she’d seen it coming all along, a Mona Lisa smiled plastered across her lips. For the very last time he tried to stop himself. He didn’t kiss her the way he had picked her up to do, just breathed heavily for a moment and watched her as he thought about all the ways this could go wrong.   
With all her scheming and mischief, he expected Beth to take the lead when he paused. He waited to feel her lips crash against his or for her to tell him to hurry up. But she just looked back at him.  
She suddenly got very serious, and she began to look like the girl Daryl had always thought she was, not the saucy woman that had been pestering him lately. “You don’t have to…” she whispered, not looking him in the eyes anymore, “I just did this to get you to have sex with me but now that you’re here….”  
That was what made him kiss her at last. Her finally relenting control to him and not pushing him to do anything. The last couple weeks he had been thinking about who Beth really was, and how startled he had been by her showing him her true colors. But Beth was both shy and bold. She might be pushy when it comes to sex but he knew she could be just as kind.  
The first kiss he placed on her lips was surprisingly chaste, based on the tension that had lain between them up until that point.   
“Only if you really want to,” Daryl whispered when they separated, “I don’t want you tryin to prove a point or rebel or nothin.” He lowered himself onto his knees and then laid her on the ground in front of him. Her hair was loose of its usually ponytail, and fanned out around her head like a goddam halo.  
“I don’t want nothin serious,” she whispered back, even though she knew no one could here them, “It ain’t like I want you to be my boyfriend.”  
“Then why you doin this?”  
“Is that what you want?” She asked as she propped herself up on her elbows.  
“Naw it’s just...you ain’t a kid, I know that,” he paused choosing his words carefully. He knew how Beth felt about the subject. “But you’re still young. Can’t imagine you wantin anythin less.”  
“I do though,” she replied, her head tipping to one side to rest on her left shoulder, “I been havin sex for a while now and I ain’t ashamed to say I like it. Don need you to buy me flowers or nothin I’m just lookin for a friend.”  
Daryl thought for a second about telling her the way he’d been thinking about her. How much he liked talking to her and how much he wanted to be her friend too. But he wasn’t one for expressing his emotions, so he leaned forward and took her by the back of her neck so he could kiss her.  
She kissed him back with fervor, but all the while her lips were unbelievably soft against his. When she took his bottom lip between her teeth he pushed back against her, knocking her flat against the floor, and he pressed his growing hardness against her where he lay between her legs. She let out a little moan and that was all he needed to hear. His mouth went to hers again but now it was violent, lip and tooth battling for dominance as he ground himself against her over and over. He hadn’t dry humped like this since he was a teenager, but when her nails latched onto his shoulder and her legs wrapped around him to bring him closer, as if she couldn’t get enough, he couldn’t remember why.   
She pushed on his shoulder and he relented, rolling over onto his back so she could straddle him. She grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head. He was hardly surprised to discover she was wearing nothing underneath. She had small, perky breasts so there was no real need. He have her thighs a quick squeeze before he leaned up to kiss her again, and then he let his hands roam up over her flat stomach. He ran his palms up her ribcage, his index fingers brushing just underneath her nipples, and he felt her shiver. He smiled against her lips at this, and he barely ghosted his fingers over her nipples. She jerked at his teasing, and her nipples were so taut he knew it probably hurt. But he denied her for a moment longer as he took to sucking on her neck. She threw her head back and her hands went up to touch her nipples herself but he caught them. Beth groaned aloud out of both arousal and frustration, so he finally gave in, and tenderly pressed his mouth to her right nipple, and then her left. He went back to her right and palmed her left, languidly lapping at her nipple until her breaths grew short and she gasped aloud.  
He was so focused on his task that he was surprised when the button to his pants popped open, and she guided his zipper down. He leaned back against the floor, lifting himself up a little to allow her to push his pants and boxers down until his erection sprung free of them. She stopped there, not bothering to remove his pants, and eagerly took him into her small but capable hand. She had never been a fan of teasing her partner, and Daryl didn’t seem to have any complaints. He was already ridiculously hard, and she wondered how long he had been waiting for this. She imagined him, touching himself in the shower the same way she did, thinking of her, and she felt a new burst of arousal rush between her thighs. She squeezed lightly as she stroked up his shaft, and watched as a small bead of precum seeped out of the hole. She quickly pressed her finger against the droplet, and Daryl let out a loud, gasping groan. She smiled as she looked up to see him eyes closed and mouth open, just knowing she was doing this to him. She worked in circular motions to spread the precum all over the head until Daryl’s hand closed around her wrist.  
“God you’ve got the fuckin magic touch,” he panted, pulling her hand away from his dick. Then he gave her a dark smile that made her insides twist and whispered “My turn.”  
He pushed her back over onto the tile and she was already shaking, just thinking about how big he had felt in her palm. She almost wanted to tell him not to bother, that she was wet enough and he should just fuck her, please. But at the same time, she almost wanted to see what Daryl Dixon could do. So she laid back, chest heaving in anticipation. She expected him to remove his shirt too but he kept it on, only kicking off his pants and boxers before turning savagely to hers. He wasn’t as gentle as that first kiss anymore, he practically tore open the button on her shorts and then he unceremoniously shoved them all the way down to her ankles. She began smiling to herself, waiting for his hands to find their way under the elastic of her panties, but she gasped as his fingers suddenly filled her. She looked up at him in surprise as he leaned over her, then down at his right hand, buried between her legs. He had simply pushed her panties to the side and was now pumping his fingers into her without abandon, giving her no time to adjust.  
“You’re just a fuckin faucet for me aren’t you?” He said in a low voice, and it was all she could do to violently nod as she bit back a cry of pleasure.   
He crooked fingers and she couldn’t hold back anymore. “Yes right there!” She cried, encouraging him to touch her the way she always did herself. But he only did so for a couple seconds before slowing and she let out a small cry of disagreement.   
“Shhhhhh,” he shushed her softly, and her knees went even weaker than before.  
He pulled out his two fingers completely, and they glistened in the moonlight. Daryl felt his dick twitch against Beth’s legs at the sight, and she let out a moan. He used his thumb to push her panties down and she kicked them, along her her pants, away across the tile floor. He slowly, teasingly brought his hand back to her soaking folds, and ran his fingers absently over her opening. He could smell her arousal in the air, and as he brought his now soaking fingers up to her throbbing clit, he knew he would be able to make her cum just like this. She practically sobbed at his touch, but he kneaded her slowly and gently. He brought her to her climax at a pace that Beth found maddening, but when it finally did come she swore she saw stars.   
As Beth came down from her high, Daryl gave her some space, pressing only a couple kisses against her lips before moving to her neck. He pushed her legs apart and she relented easily, allowing him to kneel in front of her. Beth’s breathing finally evened, and she pressed a hand to Daryl’s neck, bringing his face up to hers so she could kiss him again. He let his pelvis fall a little, pressing his head against her hot, slick entrance as if asking for admission. Without breaking their kiss, Beth snaked her hand between them and guided him into her. As he bottomed out inside of her, his head pressed flush against her cervix, she let out a little gasp.  
“You okay?” He asked, just to be sure.  
“Yeah,” she looked up at him, and then one corner of her mouth quirked up in a little smile, “Just never been so full before. Never even seen one that big.”  
And with that sentence his dick twitched upward, pressing directly against her g-spot and she let out a whimper.  
“Yeah well my dick ain’t never been this soaking wet before,” he groaned, and he slowly started to move inside her.  
Beth looked down at where they met. She loved watching his long, thick cock slide all the way out of her and then slip back in.   
“You like to watch eh?” Daryl said, his voice a little strangled by pleasure. “Watch this.”  
He thrust his hand under her backside, lifting her up several inches, and began crashing into her mercilessly. She practically screamed in response, her eyes going closed as she ground against each of his thrusts. Just her sounds were bringing him close to the edge himself, and after a moment or two he slowed, then pulled himself out of her completely.  
“What’re you doing?” She cried in disappointment.  
“Just give me a second girl,” he panted, but she merely grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled his face down to hers. She kissed him pleadingly, as if to say “fuck me fuck me fuck me”.  
He grabbed the underside of her thighs and rolled them over so that she could be on top. He knew he would be able to last longer this way, and Beth certainly seemed to enjoy control. She impatiently took him in her hands again, pressing his head to her entrance for only a moment before pushing herself down onto him. He thought this would be easier, but seeing her in all her naked beauty, her lips swollen and flushed from their violent kissing, he had to stop her.  
“Don’t. Move.” he said through gritted teeth.  
“What?” Her eyes went wide with worry. “Am I hurting you?”  
“No just,” he groaned, “If you move I’m gonna fucking cum in you right now.”  
She nodded, but began slowly lifting herslef.  
“Did you not fuckin hear me Beth?” Daryl growled at her, but she shushed him. He watched as she took his hand and pressed it to her clit. He understood now, and began working circles around the tender area. She started panting, and when Daryl finally felt ready, he moved his other hand to her hip, bringing her down onto him again.   
She set a slow pace, bringing herself all the way up until only his head was still inside of her, and then bearing down onto him hard. She opened her eyes to look at him, and he could see in her wide pupils that she was close. He pressed a hand hard against her back, bringing her chest to his. He then lifted his pelvis off the floor and started slamming into her. She clearly hadn’t expected this, and within moments she was crying out her release. He press his palm to her mouth to quiet her, a motion that he found so surprisingly erotic that he could no longer hold back. He tore himself out of her and came all over his own stomach.  
She lay against his chest, both of them covered in sweat, and his hand still pressed firmly against her mouth.  
“I just fuckin knew,” Beth said between pants, “That it would be that good.”  
“Mmmmm,” Daryl hummed tiredly, “How do you know it was that good?”  
Beth lifted herself onto her elbows and looked down at his stomach. “Because I’ve never seen that much cum in my life,” she said with a laugh. She stood, and he watched her stroll across the room until a look of surprise came over her face and she dropped to the floor.  
“Fuck!” She shout-whispered. Daryl was about to ask her what was wrong, but he heard Maggie’s high pitched, angry voice from below.  
They said nothing to each other, just scrambled to toss on clothing. Even then, Maggie had clearly seen Beth naked through the windows, and knew exactly what she had been doing.  
Beth could hear Maggie’s steps clanging on the metal stairs as she tried frantically to think of a solution. Finally, she saw the closet door, and she threw it open, somewhat forcefully shoving, Daryl inside. Luckily he gave no protest. Just as she slammed the door behind him, the door to the tower crashed open.  
“What the hell are you doing?” Maggie demanded.  
“Just foolin around Maggie jeez.”  
Maggie sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I know- I know you’re an adult and I’m tryin to be okay with you havin sex. It’s just you’re my little sister, the only sibling that I got left, and….” She shook her head. “Fool around, do whatever, just be safe. And never again in the fucking guard tower, Beth. Yer supposed to be lookin out for us. Ain’t responsible of you.”   
Maggie turned to go and Beth let out a premature sigh of relief. Maggie turned on her heel to face Beth again, a confused look on her face.  
“Where’s uh…..Zach?”  
“He went out the window?” Beth said, unable to think of anything else on the spot.  
“Bullshit them windows don’t even open,” Maggie said, putting her hands on her hips in a familiar “tell me the fucking truth” way.  
Beth couldn’t stop her eyes from darting to the closet, and of course Maggie noticed.   
“Okay come on out Romeo,” she said, taking a few lazy steps toward the door. She banged on it twice, but thankfully Daryl didn’t open up. Maggie gave her a look and Beth’s heart raced. “Come on. I wanna have a discussion with you about prophylactics.”  
“Cmon Maggie,” Beth whined, “I’m an adult now. You said it yourself.”  
“Yeah but we both know Daddy’s never had the talk with you. You’re his little girl.”  
“It ain’t nothin I don’t know about Maggie!” Beth cried, grabbing her sister’s arm.  
“What’s goin on here?” Maggie asked after a second, her eyes narrowed nearly to slits, “I mean I know you’re embarrassed but you’re full on freaking out right now.” She looked at the door, then back at her little sister. And after a moment of tense silence between them, her eyes widened. “It ain’t Zach is it? Beth who is in there?”  
Beth shook her head, near tears with how frustrated she was.  
“I can just open the door but I’m giving you the opportunity to be straight with me Beth. Show me you’re an adult.”  
“Why does it matter Maggie?” Beth shouted, tears unwittingly gathering on her bottom lashes, “I can make my own decisions!”  
“Because the way you’re acting scares me Beth! If you’re tryin so hard to keep this from me, it can’t be good!” Maggie yelled back, and with that she threw the door open.  
Daryl stepped out as soon as the door opened, not wanting Maggie to peer in and see him cowering like a scared little boy. Maggie just stared at him for a minute before turning to Beth.  
“Are you fuckin with me?” Maggie asked, her voice eerily calm and low.  
“Yeah Maggie,” Beth spit at her sister, “I thought it’d be hilarious to get caught fucking Daryl. I couldn’t wait to see the look on your fucking face when you barged in here with no concern for my privacy, and made me feel like a fucking child.”  
“You practically are a child!” Maggie continued to argue with Beth as if Daryl wasn’t even there, “And until you grow up it’s my job to watch out for you and take care of you!”  
“Take care of me?” Beth laughed but a single tear coursed down her cheek, “You don’t take care of me and you never did. You just try to make sure I survive and don’t check out before you say so.”  
Maggie didn’t say anything for a moment, as her eyes began to water too. “I’m tryin Beth,” she whispered, and her voice cracked. She looked up at Daryl with pure poison in her eyes before looking back at her little sister. “You’re lucky I ain’t gonna say nothin to daddy. I should. But this is over right now, y’hear me?”  
Without waiting for a response, Maggie sniffed back her tears and left the guard tower. Beth listened to her sister practically running down the stairs before lifting her hands to her face to wipe away her tears. In the moment she hadn’t been thinking of Daryl but now she was incredibly embarrassed. Not just that he had seen her cry, but of the things she had said. They had agreed not long ago that this was casual, and right after they finished fucking all her baggage was dumped on him.  
“I’m sorry,” she quietly croaked.  
“It ain’t nothin to be sorry bout,” Daryl said, brushing it off with a huff, “Ain’t your fault or nothin.”  
“Could you just….” Beth paused to hold back a sob, “Please go. I’ll keep watch I just wanna be alone.”  
Daryl didn’t argue because he could tell Beth knew what she wanted. It wasn’t his job to second guess her decisions, she got enough of that from Maggie. He thought it over on his way back inside. He didn’t blame Maggie. He knew what it was like to feel responsible for a sibling. Hell, he’d nearly gotten himself killed just defending Merle’s honor that time with the tweaker. But at the same time he couldn’t help but feel infuriated with Maggie. Not only had she ruined what Daryl thought might have been the perfect moment, but he didn’t like her talking to Beth that way. It was probably absurd, but he felt like he understood Beth better than her own sister ever could. How could he? They’d only spoken ten times at the most and this thing they had had come on so suddenly he never had time to learn much about the girl.   
But much like Beth had thought to herself earlier, he felt that he understood Beth because they were kindred spirits. Daryl would hardly admit it to himself let alone Beth, but he wasn’t sure he just wanted to be friends with her. She stirred a longing for companionship in him that he had never felt. He had never had anything lasting. Just a string of girls he never cared much about. He thought to himself, just before he fell asleep early that morning, that maybe he could care about Beth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people don't like the way I portray Beth because they don't think that she'd ever be as stalwart as I depict her. But I think Beth's got a lot more going on than the show gives her time for soooooo. This is how I see Beth.  
> And as for Daryl, he talks way more in my fics than he does on the show. But I really think that if he opened up to someone the way he does with Beth in this fic, he'd talk a lot more. Besides, I'll admit that I portray him how I wish he was sometimes, not how he really is.


	4. "You ain't gonna hear about it from me"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie's pissed off at Daryl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a shortie, but there's a pretty cut little moment in there. I'm a little light on the cutesie stuff.

Beth trudged back into the prison just as breakfast was being passed around. She saw her sister sitting at one of the tables below, and Maggie undoubtedly saw her shadow fall over the cafeteria, but the older Greene girl did not look up.  
Beth’s eyes were heavy from crying, and the moment she got to her cell, she collapsed on her bed. Emotional and physical exhuastion lulled her to sleep nearly immediately. When Daryl Dixon walked past her cell he could hear the gentle snoring from last night. He looked over to see her sprawled out, still wearing her shoes. He snuck silently into her room and gently removed her boots. He gently nudged her legs onto the bed, and before he could stop himself, he pushed several locks of wild blonde hair out of her face. When he emerged from her room, Maggie was standing at the end of the hallway. Her eyes locked with him and he swore she could have incinerated him with her eyes. He cleared his throat uncomfortably and pulled the privacy curtain closed behind him.  
He turned to walk in the direction Maggie wasn’t blocking, even though he was starving and wanted breakfast. But he could hear the clack of her boots, identical to Beth’s, as she ran up behind her.  
“Preying on my little sister wasn’t enough eh?” She hissed, grabbing his arm, “Gotta creep on her in her sleep? You fucking pervert.”  
“I was takin off her goddam boots,” he shook off her hand forcefully, “And don’t you ever touch me again.”  
“Or what?” Maggie instigated, giving him a little shove, “If you don’t stay away from her I swear to god I’ll knock you senseless.”  
“I said don’t touch me bitch!” Daryl said, unable to stop his voice from rising.  
“Hey! Hey!” Glenn shouted, coming up beside them, “What did you just call her?” Glenn was usually very laid back, but Daryl saw a fire in his eyes. He got that way whenever it came to Maggie.  
Daryl shook his head. “I didn’t mean that,” he admitted, looking right at Maggie. But she refused to look back at him, only crossed her arms and glared at some point in the distance, her jaw set. “But you ain’t got the right to treat me like that.”  
“Like what?” Glenn asked, no longer fuming towards Daryl. He looked back and forth between his wife and his friend but neither one provided any explanation. Daryl just stared at Maggie, daring her to look back at him.  
Her eyes finally did flick back to him, but they were still full of anger. “I didn’t say nothin I didn’t mean. You gave up my respect Dixon.” Maggie said, voice full of malice, and stalked off toward the other prison block.  
Glenn looked at where she had gone before turning back to Daryl. “Dude. What the hell is going on with you two? I’ve seen Maggie angry but that’s like, a whole other level of livid.”  
“If Maggie decides to tell you that’s up to her,” Daryl said, and turned to leave, “But you ain’t gonna hear about it from me.”


	5. "I ain't ashamed"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth does a little investigating to figure out what happened between her sister and Daryl

Glenn wasn’t the only one who had witnessed the end of Daryl and Maggie’s spat. No one else knew what had transpired, but the residents of the prison tiptoed around the rift between Maggie and Daryl for the rest of the day. When Beth finally woke up and emerged from her cell, it was to a crying baby, and she didn’t hear about their fight until later that night.  
She sat at the table playing card with Carl, Judith happily sucking on her pacifier, when Glenn sat down beside her.  
“Hey whatcha guys playin?” He piped up cheerfully.  
“Carl’s trying to teach me how to play poker,” Beth quipped. She hadn’t forgotten the heartache of last night, but the more she pretended everything was fine, the way she always had, the easier it was to deal with.  
“She ain’t very good,” Carl teased.  
“How do you even know how to play?” Beth countered, “How old were you when the turn happened? Eight?”  
“Excuse you I was ten.”  
“What ten year old plays poker?” Glenn laughed along with Beth.  
“I learned!” Carl cried defensively, “It’s somethin to do!”  
They all laughed for a minute before Judith started wailing. Beth left the table to change her, and when she turned around Daryl was walking in the door. She smiled at him but he just shook his head, and looked past her. She looked over her shoulder to see Maggie. She was shooting daggers at the two of them. Beth rolled her eyes at Daryl, but he was already gone. She frowned, but set to the task of changing the baby. When she was settled again, Beth set Judith in her carrier beside the table.  
“No man I have no clue. She won’t tell me.” Glenn was whispering when Beth sat down.  
“What are you guys talking about?” She looked back and forth between them as Carl dealt Glenn a hand.  
“Glenn says that Daryl and Maggie got in a huge fight this morning,” Carl said, grinning at the new gossip.  
“Yeah dude it was really crazy,” Glenn said, shaking his head, “I heard Daryl call Maggie a bitch so I came running and-”  
“He what?” Beth interrupted. What could Maggie have said to Daryl that would aggravate him enough to call her a bitch? Beth had thought this was just between her and her sister, but clearly Maggie had involved Daryl.  
“He called her a bitch!” Glenn exclaimed, then, seeing Beth’s look of surprise, “I know, it was nuts. So I stormed up to Daryl and I was all like ‘what the hell was that?’”  
“You’re such a hero Glenn,” Carl rolled his eyes.  
“Tellin a story little dude. Anyways, then Daryl was like ‘I’m sorry I didn’t mean it, but you can’t talk to me like that’. And he just like stared at her for like ten minutes but no one said anything.”  
“Maggie not talking,” Carl interjected, “That’s different.”  
“Cmon man,” Glenn fixed Carl with a look, “Okay so after a couple minutes, Maggie finally says ‘you gave up my respect, I meant what I said’ and walked away. It was so weird.”  
“And she never told you what she was talking about?” Beth asked, her heart pounding.  
“Frankly, I haven’t even mustered up the courage to ask yet,” Glenn admitted, “The look in her eye scares the bejeezus out of me.”  
“Weird….” Beth breathed. It was only a matter of time before Maggie told Glenn. She would need to rant about it eventually, that’s how she dealt with things. And then Glenn would never be able to keep it a secret and everyone would know.   
“I was hoping you’d be able to tell me what was going on,” Glenn sighed, “I’ve got nothing. I fold.”  
“Me too,” Beth added, laying down a royal flush. She ignored Carl’s astonished cries and stood up. “I gotta go. Can you watch the baby Carl?”  
Without waiting for an answer she stood and practically ran out of the cafeteria. She went straight to Daryl’s room, but when she threw open the privacy curtain he wasn’t there. She turned to go back downstairs but there was Maggie, ready to accost her just like she had Daryl.  
“Get out of the way Maggie,” Beth said under her breath as she brushed past her.  
“You lookin for him?” Maggie said, following her down the stairs, “Thought I made it clear to both of you but no one seems to be takin the hint.”  
“I just wanna know what’s goin on Maggie, so leave me alone.”  
“I’ll tell you what’s goin on,” Maggie caught her arm on the landing and brought her closer, “This mornin I saw him just creepin around your room while you were sleepin. I told him he was bein a pervert, because he was, and told him to stay away from you.”  
“Yeah well I don’t exactly trust you to be unbiased at the moment so I’m gonna see what he says,” Beth shook off her sister’s grasp and darted down the stairs. Maggie called after her but Beth ran until she was outside, ignoring the puzzled looks people gave her.   
She finally found Daryl at the fence, but Rick was taking down walkers mere feet away. She knew if she waited Maggie would come after her and drag her away from him if she had to, but everyone was already suspicious of Daryl and she didn’t want Rick to catch on. She picked up a couple of stones and looked around to make sure no one was watching. She pitched a couple at Daryl until one hit him in the back of the head. He whirled around, looking pissed off until he saw her standing there. His gaze softened, but he still looked upset.  
“Hey Rick I’m gonna go take a quick break I’ll be right back,” Daryl shouted as he jogged away from the fence. Rick put up a hand but didn’t look to see him go.  
Daryl grabbed Beth by the elbow, gently dragging her so that they stood out of view behind the guard tower.  
“What the hell happened between you and Maggie, Daryl?” Beth demanded.  
But before Daryl answered, he leaned down, pressing his mouth hard against hers. She looked up at him in silence for a moment because she hadn’t been expecting that. They’d made it clear they weren’t really together, so she assumed the only time they’d be kissing was during or before sex. But here he was, kissing her behind the guard tower in a way that made her blood sing.  
“I’m sorry about that,” Daryl hurried to say, looking over to where Rick was still stabbing walkers, “Shoulda been more quiet but she really pissed me off. And then fuckin Glenn came runnin…” He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, and Beth couldn’t help but wish, despite the issue at hand, that they could just keep kissing.  
“What exactly happened?”  
“Well…” Daryl looked at her sheepishly, “It’s just, I walked past and you were snorin and I noticed you hadn’t taken of your boots. So I went in and took em off for you and put your legs on the bed so you wouldn’t be sore. And when I left Maggie saw me and she got all pissed off.” Daryl stopped. He didn’t want to tell her the next part because it had been hard enough just hearing Maggie say it. He didn’t care to repeat it.  
“And?” Beth urged him on.  
He looked down at her and wrung his hands subconsciously. “I dunno she called me a pervert,” he cleared his throat and stared down at her cowboy boots, “Didn’t feel great. Kinda feel like she ain’t wrong.”  
“God Daryl, you ain’t a pervert,” Beth said, exasperated.  
“You’re so young Beth!” Daryl countered, “Don you ever feel like maybe this ain’t all right? I can think about girls like you, but every sane person knows I ain’t actually supposed to fuck em!”  
“Girls like me?” Beth put her hands on her hips, “Why don’t you tell me about girls like  
me?”   
“Pretty young things,” Daryl said in a low voice, “You know the type of girls that flirt with college boys and go to parties.”  
“I’d be in college now if this ain’t never happened,” Beth said coolly, “So it ain’t really that scandalous if I flirt with them.”  
“Yeah well I ain’t in college,” Daryl said, looking past her, “And if I ever did go it’d be long behind me.”  
They both stood in silence for a moment. A pleasant breeze passed over them, and for a moment Beth didn’t mind how awkward the silence was as she listened to the trees rustling.  
“Things ain’t like they were before, Daryl.”  
“I know,” he said in a voice too small for him.  
“Then you know things like college don’t matter,” she said slowly, “And that either you or I or both of us could be dead tomorrow. I ain’t ashamed of nothin. Ain’t ashamed of findin a lil comfort in this wasteland. I also know I like you Daryl. I like bein your friend and I like fuckin you too and there really ain’t nothin wrong with that if you ask me. There’s alot worse goin on out there than a couple of people gettin together.”  
Daryl turned to face her, and this time, it was her that stood up on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. She gave him a little smile and then she was gone. He looked after her, watching her cowboy boots disappear into the tall weeds.


	6. "It's a codename"

Even though Beth slept through most of the day, she still felt tired as the sun went down. But as she watched Daryl leave for guard duty she fought it off. She waited an hour or so before following. Luckily, Maggie was off somewhere with Glenn. Probably telling him all about how she had caught her baby sister fucking an older man.  
Beth climbed the steps to the guard tower as quietly as possible, but Daryl must have heard her coming because he emerged before she reached the top.  
“You really think it’s a good idea for you to be trapsin out here again tonight?” He asked as she climbed the last couple steps.   
“I don’t care,” she whispered in his ear before placing a kiss on his cheek.  
“We can’t…” Daryl trailed off, “I ain’t riskin it again tonight.”  
Beth simply nodded, but later she might try to get him to change his mind. She sat down on the walkway, letting her legs dangle over the edge. She would never say so out loud, but every now and then she still thought about suicide. It wasn’t something that just went away. She didn’t think she’d ever do it, but when she first climbed the guard tower, she looked down and wondered if it would kill her if she jumped from it. Probably not, but maybe if she jumped onto the fence like the youngest girl in the Virgin Suicides.   
Daryl sat down next to her and she pushed the thought away.  
“So we’re friends?” She smiled at him.  
“Gotta be at least that,” he shrugged.  
“What do friends talk about?”  
“You ain’t never had one?” He looked sideways at her, “I don’t believe that for a second. You’re a pretty, funny girl. You were probably queen bee at your school.”  
“Nah I wasn’t,” she kicked her legs in the open air, “I had a coupla friends but everyone had a best friend. There was Meghan, Brooke, Tasha, Nina, and me. Meghan and Brooke were best friends. Tasha and Nina were best friends. And I was just Beth.”  
“Hmm” Daryl hummed. It wasn’t much, but he couldn’t think of what to say and it fit the mood well enough.  
“I didn’t just start thinkin of killin myself out of nowhere…” Beth said quietly, “Feel like people like me are always a lil like that. An I tried before that time after the barn. I tried before the dead rose up. Nobody really wanted to be my friend after that.”  
“I didn’t know that…” Daryl chanced a glance at her but she was looking in the distance. He wondered how Beth could just open up like this. Even though Daryl cared about Beth he didn’t know if he could just sit down and talk about this stuff.  
“Yeah daddy and Maggie don’t like to talk about it.”  
They sat in silence for a moment before Daryl mustered his courage. “My ma was like you. You know like you said y’all are always a lil like that.”  
She looked at him, saying nothing, but her eyes asked him to continue. It had been surprisingly easy for him to talk to her, so he swallowed hard and spoke again.  
“She burned down our house when I was young...but like you said...she tried a coupla times but I was always around and I’d call an ambulance. Then we’d have hospital bills and my Pa’d get mad and it’d start all over again. I din know any better I suppose.”  
“It ain’t on a child to look after their parent Daryl,” Beth said, turning to him, “You did miles more than you had to.”  
“You’re one to talk,” Daryl said, “Think I ain’t seen the way you take care of your daddy. Like the sun shines out is ass. That’s why I was so surprised, when you tol me he was a drinker and that your mamma raised you.”  
“My mamma loved him, so I figure it’s a good way to honor her,” she sighed, “Besides it ain’t like I don’t love im. And he’s been tryin. He’s been a good father, it’s jus that I guess it’s a lil late for me is all.”  
They sat in silence again for a moment. Daryl had to physically fight the urge to hold her hand in his. Before he had thought his lust for the youngest Greene girl was making him more like his brother. But now he didn’t even recognize himself in his actions, let alone anyone else.   
He was surprised when it was her that tucked her hand inside his larger one.  
Maggie stood a little ways away, in the shadow of the building where she could see her sister, perched on the edge of the tower, but there was no way Beth could see her. The moment Beth had climbed the tower, Maggie had wanted to storm after her, but she waited, hoping that maybe her sister was going up there to break it off with the older man. But the longer she watched the interaction, the less she wanted to interrupt. It wasn’t her sister’s happiness or anything that stopped her. Surprisingly enough it was Daryl’s. Beth spent most of the exchange looking out over the prison, saying things that obviously pained her. But Daryl stared at her most of the time, and the look on his face told Maggie that there was no way Daryl was taking advantage of her little sister. Sad to say, if anyone was using someone, Beth was using the poor man. Or at least she thought so, until Beth wordlessly took his hand in hers. It became very clear then to Maggie that she was spying on a very intimate moment. She was ashamed, not only of what she had said to Daryl, but also that she hadn’t trusted her little sister for a moment.  
Back up on the tower, Daryl worried that Beth could feel how hard his heart was pounding. Indeed she could, and it made her smile to feel the jackhammer in his fingertips. She felt strange. It gave her pleasure knowing she aroused him. This couldn’t possibly be much different that that.  
“Is Beth your real name?” Daryl asked suddenly.  
“No,” Beth smiled, “It’s a codename.”  
“You know what I mean.”  
“Is Daryl your real name?”   
“Oh shut up girl.”  
“Okay, okay,” Beth laughed aloud, and Daryl felt his heart flutter, “No. Beth is short for Elizabeth. Why?”  
“Just wondered. Coulda been Bethany.”  
Beth wrinkled her nose at that. There had been a girl in her kindergarten class named Bethany, and she was a relentless bully. But before she could think about it too long, Daryl was turning her face towards his. She met him halfway and they kissed for several moments. That feeling stirred in Beth again, and it suddenly evoked a fear so strong she nearly bolted. It was the fact that this kiss wasn’t supposed to lead anywhere. He didn’t have a reason for kissing her, unless he actually had feelings for her. And less than 24 hours ago she had quite literally told him she didn’t want anything serious. But here they were, kissing for the sake of kissing. And it scared the wits out of her.  
She had to make this kiss lead somewhere. Then it wouldn’t mean anything. She let her hand wander into Daryl’s lap where, sure enough, he had the beginning of an erection.  
“Hey…” he whispered, breaking their kiss, “Thought we said not tonight.”  
“You said,” she replied with a mischievous grin, “I unwillingly agreed.”  
“Yeah well you still agreed so….” Daryl gently pushed her hand away.   
Beth shouldn’t have felt dejected. After all, it was a ploy to cover up any emotional moment they might have had. But she still felt a little hurt that he didn’t want her.   
“Okay then…” she stood and turned, “I guess I’ll go then.”  
“Jesus girl,” Daryl called, an edge of bitterness in his voice, “If I didn’t know any better I’d think you were just usin me for my body.”  
“I mean, we did say you weren’t my boyfriend,” Beth countered, “And us sittin here just holdin hands and kissin and talkin about feelins seems like somethin else.”  
“Hey, you were the one who started talkin bout feelins. I mean, I don’t mind, that’s what friends do. And you were the one who grabbed my hand.”  
“Yeah well you kissed me. Twice.” Beth crossed her arms over her chest.  
“What do you mean?” Daryl cried, “I’m sure it’s been more’an twice!”  
“Yeah but that was for a reason. You just kissed me outta nowhere earlier and you kissed me outta nowhere now!”  
“It weren’t outta nowhere!”  
“Well we weren’t gonna have sex either time so what was it for?”  
Daryl looked up at her through narrowed eyes. “Can’t kiss you unless we’re havin sex?”  
“Yeah….well I mean…” but Beth wasn’t sure what she meant.  
“You know what,” Daryl interjected, “I ain’t wanted to say nothin but this ain’t just sex to me. I like bein around you, Beth. You make me feel like I ain’t alone in this, what did you call it? Wasteland?” He paused, his heart pounding out of nervousness so loud he could barely even hear his own words, “If this is just sex to you then get the fuck outta here.”  
Beth was torn. She couldn’t just walk away after that, but she wasn’t ready to face Daryl’s feelings for her yet. “It ain’t…” she whispered after a moment, “It’s just I wasn’t expectin to be this close with you. I told you I ain’t ever really had a friend before.”  
Daryl was silent for a moment as well. “It’s alright. Wasn’t fair of me to expect that from you. You’re right, kissin ain’t exactly friendly.” He paused for a beat and then looked up at her, “I’ll fuck you now if it’ll make you feel better.”  
“Nah...it don’t feel right now…”  
“C’mon Elizabeth,” Daryl faked a smile. If it was casual that she really wanted he’d fucking give it to her. But he didn’t know how to just make the tightness in his chest go away. He figured he could start with getting rid of the tightness in his pants.  
Believing that he had moved past their spat, Beth bit her lip and nodded, practically skipping inside. Daryl followed, this time making sure that he locked the door behind them. When he turned back, Beth was already kneeling before him. He felt fear rush through him. It wasn’t that he was afraid of blowjobs, he quite enjoyed them actually. He’d just never received one from someone like Beth. Hell, he’d never done anything with someone like Beth. And if this was a tit for tat kind of situation….well, Beth would be disappointed.  
She smiled up at as him as she undid his zipper and pushed his pants down to his knees. She didn’t seem discouraged by his lack of arousal, she simply went to work with her hands, stroking him until he was at least semi-hard. Then she let go of him, and wrapped her hands around his backside. He expected her to take him in her mouth as eagerly as she usually was, but she teasingly kissed one hip bone, then dragged her tongue over his stomach to kiss the other one. Just watching her kneel in front of him caused his cock to stiffen, and it twitched, eliciting a giggle from Beth. God she had the prettiest fucking smile.  
She held him in her hand again for only a moment before taking just the head into her mouth. She sucked gently, pulling a moan from Daryl. He wound his hand around her little blond ponytail, gently pushing that pretty pink mouth farther down onto his dick. She took his length with some grace, causing him to wonder how many times she had done this before. He tried really hard not to think about.  
She moved her tongue against him at an agonizing rate. Daryl was already frustrated from today’s events, and if she was any other girl he’d probably be pushing her head up and down. But he kept his hand still in her hair, letting her take her time. Finally, she began to move, sucking lightly as she pulled back and sliding her tongue along his length as she took all of him in again. Her movements became faster and faster, and he swore under his breath. When she began moaning against him it sent him over the edge. Her eyes widened with surprise when he came in her mouth, but to her credit she remained calm.  
“Jesus Beth I’m sorry,” Daryl sputtered, “I’m sorry it was just the hummin and-”  
“It’s alright” she smiled up at him and wiped her chin. With a start, he realized that she had swallowed his cum. “I was just startled. Ain’t never had a guy finish in my mouth before.”  
Daryl pulled up his pants and then leaned down to kiss her. He dropped down to her level and kept kissing her, even though his mind was racing. He wanted to pleasure Beth too, but there was no way he could get hard again this soon after cumming. He thought about just using his hands, but that wouldn’t seem right after she had just sucked him off.   
“Beth…” he whispered, breaking their kiss.  
“Yeah?” She continued kissing his neck as he spoke.  
“I ain’t…. I ain’t never….Oh fuck,” he struggled with his words. He was beyond embarrassed that such a young girl was more experienced than him.  
Beth froze, and after a moment drew back to look at him. “Ever?”  
“Yeah…”  
“I ain’t never had anyone do it to me,” she admitted, “Jimmy didn’t want to and Zach probably never even thought about it.” She stared at him for a moment before kissing his neck again. “I ain’t never done it doggy style,” she whispered in his ear.  
“I wanna try Beth,” he breathed, “But remind me of that next time.” And with that he brought her face to his, pushing her back against the tile as he assaulted her with kisses. He set to work on her jeans, unbuttoning them and pushing them down far enough to push them off. Instead of pushing her panties to the side, this time he took his time removing them. He followed them down her legs, and then gently kissed his way back up her calves. She jerked when he brushed the underside of her knee, and he filed that way under “places that arouse Beth”. His path slowed as her reached her thighs. They were impossibly white, like pocelain. His eyes flicked up to look into hers and for a moment he swore she looked nervous. Those were the times he knew he felt more than lust for Beth. When she showed that small, timid, vulnerable side of herself he wanted to make her his. He didn’t care how ridiculous it was, he wanted to hold that damn girl’s hand.   
Daryl broke eye contact and he could understand why Beth was so nervous. A couple of boys had seen her naked, but never like this. Spread-eagle before him and completely vulnerable. He leaned forward and pressed his tongue against her slit. It fell between her folds and she let out a tiny gasp. He tested the waters, tracing her entrance with his tongue before moving to her clit. She whimpered when he circled it with his tongue, and her hand knotted in his hair. He felt of rush of pleasure at seeing her so undone, and he attacked his mission with even more fervor. She started crying out and he had to come up a little to put his finger to her lips, she nodded and bit her lip. He didn’t trust her to be quiet, but there was no way he was going to stop now. He brought his tongue back to her clit, and placed an experimental finger at her entrance. She moved her hips as to encourage him, and he slowly pressed one finger into her. She muffled her cries with her other hand as he picked up speed, licking at her clit with no rhythm or pattern as he fucked her with two fingers. When she began shaking, he came up for air. She made a small noise of protest, but he ignored it as he planned his next move. He gently pressed his tongue into her. And as he dragged it along her walls he felt her shaking resume, and she began crying out far too loudly but he didn’t care. He picked up the pace again, knowing his movements were sloppy but all he cared about was the noises she was making. His name tumbled from her lips when he lifted up her back end so he could reach deeper. He wound his other hand around her leg to press his thumb against her clit and she came. He looked up to see her biting down on her hand as he removed his tongue, heavy with her cum, from her folds. He kissed her hipbone the same way she had done to him before coming up to face her.  
“Was that okay?” He asked, breathing hard.  
“How did it sound?” She laughed, and pressed her lips to his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my favorite chapter. Oh. My. God. I just really like the part where she's teasing him about her name. Like I smiled writing that. Anyways.  
> I feel like I'm not much good at smut, especially like oral/foreplay. So let me know if you have any ideas!


	7. "I don't like her"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl and Beth both try to deflect some matchmaking by Glenn and Maggie.

Beth slept like a rock that night. It felt good to sleep so well two nights in a row, and she had Daryl to thank. It had felt sloppy and she was sure he’d be better with practice, but it was still very, very good. Beth laid in bed for a long time, cherishing the moments of freedom before she would ineffably hear the baby’s wailing cries. Her privacy curtain twitched, shattering her solitude, and Maggie poked her head inside.  
“Hey Bethy,” Maggie said with a half smile, “Can we talk?”  
“Yeah I suppose,” Beth said warily, sitting up in bed. Maggie sat down on the end of her bed, and for a moment, she reminded Beth of her mother. The thought was like a knife to the heart, and Beth had to swallow the lump rising in her throat.  
“I saw you last night” she paused, “With Daryl.”  
“Oh?” Beth felt heat rise in her cheeks. If Maggie had been outside had she seen their fight? Had she heard Beth calling Daryl’s name?  
“I didn’t see much,” Maggie shook her head, “I realized after a moment it was wrong of me to be spyin on you. Sides, I guess I kinda understand now.”  
“Understand what?”  
“What’s goin on between you two.”  
Beth just gave her sister a puzzled look. There wasn’t anything to really see. Sure, last night had been strange, but if Maggie didn’t see them kissing then she couldn’t really have seen anything happen between them.  
“Oh come on Beth,” Maggie rolled her eyes, “He looks at you the way I know Glenn looks at me. You got the poor guy around your finger. And I saw y’all holdin haaaaaaaaands!” She sang the last word, and Beth blushed profusely.  
“Naw Maggie,” she rushed to explain, “It ain’t even like that. Not at all.”  
Maggie’s smile disappeared. She was silent for a minute, like she was thinking. “Beth,” she finally said, “I’m just tellin you what I saw. If it’s daddy you’re worried about, I’m sure he’ll come around.”  
“I’m not. Me and Daryl just ain’t like that.”  
“Maybe you ain’t like that, but I can guarantee you Daryl is.”  
Beth sighed. “That’s what I’m worried about. We agreed we weren’t gonna be like that and now he’s….” Beth left her sentence hanging as she brought her knees to her chest.  
“I know this probably ain’t what you wanna hear, but that’s the exact same way I felt about Glenn at first.”  
Beth glared at her sister, and with a laugh, Maggie left her alone.   
Only a couple nights ago, Beth had been the one scheming about how to get Daryl Dixon into her bed. Now she was trying to ward off his advances. Was she really shallow enough to just want sex from Daryl? Beth tried to tell herself what she always did, that it ain’t wrong to just want sex from someone, but it felt hollow.   
Not moments later, Judith started screaming her head off in the other room. Beth wanted to just cover her ears and go back to her alone time. But like her daddy said, they all had jobs to do. So she got up and did hers. 

 

Daryl could feel Glenn’s eyes on him. It had been like that for over an hour, and Daryl was itching to say something about it. If Glenn didn’t focus and stay on alert, he was likely to get bit. But Daryl didn’t say anything because he had a feeling that the awkwardness between them was because Maggie had probably told Glenn what she’d caught Daryl doing to her little sister. There wasn’t really any other explanation.  
Daryl liked to think he was more professional and experienced than the other members of their group, that that was had kept him alive this long, but that day his mind was wandering. Between him and Glenn they were just asking to be ambushed. Daryl couldn’t help but think of Beth. He hadn’t felt like himself since their first encounter. He thought it had been pure chance that thrust them together, but now that he really thought about it, he had wanted her all along. That’s why he felt anger rise up when Merle would call her jailbait, or when Zach called her a peach. That was likely why he had made an excuse to approach her.  
Just as Daryl rounded the corner, a walker stumbled out to greet him. It was skin and bones, moving slowly and dragging its feet. Daryl grabbed the tattered remains of it shirt and put it down easily and quickly. The thing had obviously been starving. Daryl looked down at the body. It looked like a teenage boy, maybe a couple years older than Carl. And that’s when Daryl saw the gouges, one running up each forearm. He shook his head and moved on.   
The run ended with no other complications, and as they loaded cans into the back end of the minivan, Glenn turned to Daryl at last.  
“You know,” he said shifting from foot to foot uncomfortably, “Maggie told me about you and Beth.”  
“Yeah?” Daryl replied calmly. He didn’t look up from his task, just continued lifting the bags. “What about us?”  
“That you guys are like...an item or something?” Glenn squinted against the sunlight. Daryl had half a mind to tell him to keep his nose out of it and help him with the food.  
“Well we ain’t,” Daryl mumbled. He stopped for a moment and stood to face Glenn.  
“Maggie doesn’t think so,” Glenn said with a crooked smile, “She thinks you have a crush on her little sister.”  
Daryl stared at Glenn silently for a moment. He felt a blush rise in his cheeks, and his embarrassment only made it worse. He ducked his head and began loading again with even more fervor, but Glenn had already caught on.  
“It’s true isn’t it? You totally like Beth!”  
“I don’t like her,” Daryl protested still unable to look Glenn in the eye, “Now help me with these goddam bags, jackass.”  
Glenn complied for a moment, but he piped up again in no time. “Wow. If I could see anyone being the one with a crush it would be Beth. You seem like the type to wanna keep things casual.”  
“Shut up Glenn!” Daryl finally demanded, practically slamming a bag of food into the back end. He heard a crack, and the syrup from a can of fruit started seeping through the bag. Daryl gave Glenn a cross look before storming away. He got in the driver’s seat and gripped the wheel in his hands until they were pale white and sore.  
Glenn got into the passenger's seat carefully in quietly. Daryl could feel Glenn cautiously looking at him out of the corner of his eye, but he ignored it and pulled the van out of the strip mall.  
Glenn obviously couldn’t tell when to pull his punches and keep his mouth shut, because after a moment of tense silence, he said, “For the record I’m not like, mad at you. Maggie was pissed off at first but she told me she wasn’t mad either…” he paused, watching Daryl’s face, “She says she was spying on the two of you and she saw...well I don’t know I guess you were having a moment. She thought it was sweet.”  
Dary said nothing and focused on driving. But his throat felt tight. He didn’t know what to do. He felt so conflicted by his feelings for Beth because he had never experienced anything like this before. He didn’t want to stop this thing between them, but being rejected by her over and over would surely kill him.   
When they arrived back at the prison the situation had hardly improved. Glenn glommed onto Daryl, like he somehow still had more to say. Daryl thought to himself that maybe a little heart to heart with Glenn would help him sort out his priorities. But the idea of exposing his soft underbelly like that to anyone other than Beth was unappealing. It just wasn’t the type of thing Daryl would do.  
As they carried the food in the doors, Daryl looked up to see Beth, Judith on her hip as always, staring down resolutely from the second story landing. Judith was looking at her, giggling and smiling, but Beth barely seemed to notice. Her eyes bored into Daryl, and he inexplicably felt himself stiffen below the belt. He remembered how she had mocked Zach for “creaming his pants” before, but honestly Daryl couldn’t blame the poor son of a bitch. That girl had wicked looks. On pure impulse, Daryl gave her a wink. She didn’t react much, but he could see her holding back a smile as she turned away from him. Daryl felt his heart pound in his chest. Maybe he could do this. Having Beth this way had to be better than not having her at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that some people are probably like "OMG Daryl would never moon over a girl like this". But honestly, I've read a million and a half fics where Beth is the one obsessed with Daryl and he is like, too broken to love her back. Frankly, I'd like to see it the other way around for once.


	8. "What is it that you want this time?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl finally speaks his mind

Once Beth put the baby to sleep, she collapsed onto her bunk. That day had been exhausting. It had been two days since she had spoken to Daryl and she was starting to feel antsy. She had been thinking it over, and the best possible course of action seemed to be to take a break from Daryl. But how could she stay away from him if just two days made her feel this queasy? It was his companionship she missed, she told herself. He had been such a new and exciting thing to her. Ever since the dead had risen it was just her and her sister. Sure, Jimmy had been around for a while, but she had never really liked him that much. If she really thought about it, she didn’t like her sister that much either. She loved Maggie, of course, but she was stubborn and controlling. There were so many things neither of them understood.  
Beth absentmindedly ran her index finger over the raised scar on her wrist. She heard the sound of someone clearing their throat, and when she looked up, she saw Daryl standing there. The thought sounded cheesy in Beth’s head, but she thought his eyes actually looked like they were smoldering as they made contact with her wrist.   
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” he whispered gruffly, and his left hand went up to scratch the back of his head.  
“It’s alright,” Beth replied easily, swinging her legs off the bed to stand in front of him. She approached him slowly, letting him get a good look at her pale legs in her pajama shorts. “Ain’t nothin you ain’t never seen before. I ain’t ashamed neither.” She snaked her hand around his neck to pull him in for a kiss, but he stiffened against her touch.  
“Thought you said no kissin unless we’d be fuckin?” He said so quietly his voice was hardly even a whisper.  
“Then I guess we’ll just have to fuck,” she whispered innocently, bringing her lips close to his ear. She thought she could feel him shiver for a moment.  
“Here?” He looked at her in disbelief.  
“I got a privacy curtain, don’t I?”  
“Yeah but I seen your daddy and your sister jus walk in here like its nothin.”  
Beth looked at him quietly for a moment. “Yeah I guess you’re right. Probably for the best anyways.”  
Daryl gave her that familiar look, the one he gave her more than anyone else, that said he wanted to say more but wasn’t going to. Beth knew that Daryl talked to her more than anyone else, maybe even Carol, but he still wasn’t the chattiest guy. And so they just stood in silence for a moment before Daryl let out a heavy breath.  
“We could go to my cell,” he suggested.  
“Ain’t you gonna ask me what I meant when I said it’s probably for the best we don’t?” Beth looked up at him. She hadn’t wanted to have to prompt him. She felt awkward enough asking him for a break.  
He gave her a look so cold she could hardly believe she had just thought his eyes were smoldering. “Nah,” he mumbled, “I ain’t stupid. I know what’s goin on.”  
Beth stared at him quizzically. “Then fill me in cuz I never know what’s goin on with us.”  
“You should,” Daryl replied, anger rising in his voice. “You call all the shots Beth,” he paused, like he didn’t want to keep talking but he couldn’t stop himself. “At first I thought I was just givin you a chance to blow the whistle on everythin, but I’m tired of you tellin me when I can and can’t kiss you and layin down all the rules for me like I’m the one who’s the child.”  
For once Beth was the one that didn’t know what to say. She’d been so confused, and quite frankly angry at Daryl because she had felt like he was pushing her to be more than friends. But thinking back she could see that she had pushed Daryl around just as much if not more. She looked at Daryl, and underneath the initial anger, she could see the pain that caused it. Beth felt a rush of unwarranted emotion for the man in front of her. It wasn’t his fault he wanted to be with her. She could hardly blame him for reaching out to her considering all he’d lost lately.  
“I’m sorry,” Daryl said suddenly, pulling her from her thoughts, “It’s just….uhhh I dunno…” And with that he turned to leave.  
“What are you sorry for Daryl?” Beth caught his arm suddenly and pulled him back inside, “I’m the one that should be sorry.”  
“I’m just blubberin an bein a tool,” Daryl ducked his head like a shy little boy.  
“Hey,” Beth caught his chin and forced him to look at her, “I always asked you to be straight with me. You ain’t gotta pretend to be some bullshit macho asshole. You’re just as much of a man when you’re blubberin…” She said the last part softly, with a teasing smile on her lips. And then, against her better judgement, she stood on her tiptoes to brush her lips against his.  
When she lowered herself again she kept her eyes closed for a moment. Daryl watched her in absolute awe, and before she could open her eyes again, he was kissing her, hard and rough. She gasped against him in surprise, but kissed him back with just as much fervor when she recovered. He backed her up until she hit the wall, her shoulderblades colliding painfully with the cool bricks, but she could hardly feel it. He pressed her hard into the wall, overwhelmed and drunk with the power of her relenting to him. Beth was always so cool and collected, and her limited experience with boys made her most comfortable being the one in control. But as Daryl covered her body with his, the force of his domination made her head spin with arousal. It was almost relaxing to let him take the reigns, and she didn’t resist one bit as he lifted her until her chest was flush against his. He whipped her around and unceremoniously dropped her on the small metal cabinet. She grabbed at him, trying to pull him close to her again but he backed away. She felt rejected only for a moment until he turned to yank the privacy curtain closed and came right back between her thighs.  
“It’s bad enough your sister thinks she owns you and that she can just walk in here,” Daryl whispered in her ear before he moved to her neck. Instead of planting the gentle kisses she was used to there, he set to work, attacking her soft skin with rough kisses and sharp nips. Beth had to hold back a moan as he palmed her breast in his large hand.  
He brought his face back to hers, and she could see a dark, dangerous lust in his eyes that thrilled her. “You can do whatever you want to me Daryl,” she whispered, loving how it felt to combine her usual sauciness with submissiveness. She hooked her legs around him, pressing her heels into the soft skin above his ass as she leaned back against the wall. He ran both hands down her sides as he hungrily drank her in. He gripped her hips for only a moment before crooking his fingers in the waistband of both her shorts and her panties to pull them down. She wriggled out of them with his help. He pushed his own bottoms down just enough to let his already hard cock spring free.   
“Are you ready or do you need some persuadin?” Daryl whispered to her. Before waiting for a response, he brought his hand up between her legs. She gasped as he ran his hand up her slit. He didn’t put a single finger in her, just teased her entrance and ghosted over her clit until she let out a sharp gasp. He chuckled at the sound he made, and took his dick in his hand, pressing just the head against her heat.  
“Please…” Beth tested the waters. She had never liked being needy or having to ask for anything. But it was aganozing, just waiting for him to fill her.  
“What was that?” Daryl teased, and placed a torturously chaste kiss on her cheek.  
“Please fuck me…”Beth whispered, looking him directly in the eyes, “Mr. Dixon.”  
Daryl sucked in a breath. Plenty of women had said filthy, disgusting things to him. But nothing had ever sounded as dirty as his last name tumbling from that blonde girl’s mouth.  
He pushed forward into her slowly, and she hissed as she stretched to take him in. She had been ready, but she’d never had anyone penetrate her without foreplay first.  
Daryl moaned softly. “You’re so fuckin tight girl,” he growled, slowly pulling himself back, “Fuckin ridiculous how good you feel.”  
Beth made a face like she was about to cry out as he snapped hard back into her, but he caught it with his palm. That only seemed to turn her on more, and she purred like a kitten against his hand as he set the rhythm. He would slow pull out, then snap his hips forward, something Beth had never experienced but found she loved. Zach and Jimmy would just jerk around until they came, but Daryl was....precise. It drove her over the edge relatively quickly, and she gripped Daryl’s shoulders hard as she cried out against his palm.  
“Shhhhhh,” Daryl shushed her, even though he could barely focus on anything other than not cumming. He slowed, knowing that she would be sensitive so soon after her orgasm. And not to mention he needed the break.  
“Don’t stop,” Beth whispered, panting, “I want you to cum so bad.”  
Daryl wouldn’t have dreamed of it. He picked up the pace, thrusting into her until he could barely control his movements, only vaguely aware of the sound the cabinet was making as it hit the wall. He pulled out just barely in time, cumming all over her lips and the smooth skin of her thigh.  
He looked up from his cock to look her in the eyes. She was a little sweaty and panting, little blond curls ringing her face. He nearly blurted out that he loved her, but he bit it back.  
“That was amazing,” she whispered, burying her hand in the hair on the nape of his neck. She pulled him forward until their foreheads touched, and was surprised how easy it was to engage in such an intimate touch with him.  
“We should get dressed,” Daryl cleared his throat and pulled away, clearly uncomfortable.  
Beth hopped down from the cabinet so she could wriggle her shorts back on. “Hey Daryl?” She looked up at him suddenly.  
“What is it you want this time?” He replied teasingly, mimicking his response the last time she had said that to him.  
“Just wonderin if maybe you’d take me out on the bike sometime,” Beth smiled back at him.  
“You really think your daddy’d be okay with that?” Daryl replied.  
“Nah but I don’t think he’d like you sticking it to me much either.”  
“So because you’re doin one bad thing you might as well just say ‘screw you old man’?”  
“More like, ‘old man, I respect your opinions about motorcycles but I think they’re horseshit and I’m old enough to make my own opinions’.”  
“Alright, Alright,” Daryl shook his head. “But you’re gonna owe me another favor.”  
“Yeah because that worked out so well for you last time,” Beth winked at him and he swore his knees knocked together.  
“Got me exactly what I wanted,” Daryl murmured, stepping close to her and grabbing her forcefully but carefully by the back of her neck. The juxtaposition of violence and tenderness set Beth’s heart pounding all over again.  
“Coulda fooled me considerin all the fight you gave me,” Beth whispered back playfully, fingers hooking into his shirt.  
“Was just playin hard to get,” Daryl mumbled, then pushed her away so he could button up his pants. She turned away towards her bed, throwing him a mischievous look over her shoulder. On pure whim, he swung out and smacked her ass. She yelped a little too loudly and turned to look at him with wide eyes. Daryl just rolled his shoulders in response and strolled out of the room, leaving her rubbing her sore bottom and wondering where all this new confidence had come from.


	9. "Shoulda known"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little shout out to American Spirits in this chapter! I know a lot of people that are like "why would you smoke it's so bad for you blahhhhhhh" but yes, I am a smoker. American spirit is my brand. They're certainly not healthy for you but they're probably the best you can buy. That's why they're super expensive too.

Daryl stood by his bike smoking a cigarette early the next morning. He’d always liked getting up early, before dawn, so he could watch the sunrise. Merle had been the type to sleep until noon, and even Daryl could admit he was that type when he was hungover. But on most days, he would sit at the kitchen table in the small trailer they had shared, smoking a cheap cigarette as he watched the sky turn pink. Pink as the flush in Beth’s cheeks. He wished he had awoken that morning to her pale blonde hair in his face, their bodies plastered together by sweat and their breath reeking of morning. Not the hungover throb of morning light after a one night stand, but something comfortable and real. He didn’t know why, but he wanted to provide everything for Beth more than anything. Practically more than he wanted to live. He had never known what it was like to love, and he had always thought that even if he’d stumbled upon the foreign emotion he wouldn’t recognize it. But he knew without pause that he loved her.  
The only problem was she clearly didn’t love him back. There were times when she lay akimbo beneath him, that he could almost believe that look in her eyes was more than lust. But then she would push back against him, push him away. He still didn’t know what to do, but it had felt so good to have her under his control for at least a moment.  
He took a long drag from the cigarette and looked down at the empty pack at his feet. He loved smoking, cherished each puff. He took the smoke slowly into his lungs, feeling it move hot and languid like Beth’s tongue over his skin. He groaned, just thinking about getting her pretty little mouth on his cock again. That cute little Southern drawl set him off like a rocket. Even though he had been inside of her mere hours ago, the night before he had woken late to a mercilessly hard erection that he’d had to quiet to thoughts of her. It had helped that he could hear her, just downstairs, singing softly to Judith.  
He let the smoke burn its way out of his nostrils, closing his eyes as he revelled in the smell and feel of clean tobacco. It was a yellow pack of American Spirits, the cigarettes rich college hipsters would smoke. It felt like nothing to him after years of smoking; Merle had always said you had to smoke two of those at a time.  
When Daryl opened his eyes, he saw Beth striding across the lawn, her bare legs wet with dew. Her hair was half up and half down, in a way that Daryl had never seen her wear it before. That little braid of hers lay across her shoulders. As she came close to him, he had to resist the urge to reach out and hold it.  
“Can I have one?” She asked, gesturing to his cigarette.  
“Last one,” Daryl replied gruffly, “Sides, yer daddy’d have my head.”  
“He’s sleepin,” Beth looked around before stepping even closer to Daryl, “If you wanna....Take me away from this place.”  
Daryl sighed reluctantly and mounted his bike. She hopped on behind him gleefully, wrapping her arms around him in a way that took his breath away. He couldn’t help but fantasize about her reaching forward just a bit more to press her little hand against his growing erection. Sometimes he didn’t know if he was more like a horny teenage boy or a grumpy old man. Beth brought out both sides of him.  
“Shoulda known…” He grumbled to himself as he tossed the cigarette into the gravel beneath them.  
“Known what?” Beth piped up, her warm breath in his ear.  
“That I’d be gettin you into all sortsa trouble”, Daryl replied, and with that, he revved the bike’s engine and took off. Beth squealed in surprise and her arms tightened around his middle.  
They raced off over the narrow, tree-covered path in the direction of the sunrise. Daryl looked in his mirror and smiled at the sight of Beth’s hair flying like a pale flag behind them as she let out what sounded like a war cry. She leaned back, grinning into the wind with her eyes closed. Daryl pulled to the left a little and ran straight through a puddle. Beth shrieked something about getting all wet but Daryl could hardly hear her over his own laughter and the wind rushing in his ears.  
They continued on for a couple moments until Daryl spotted a small Seven-Eleven. He pulled into the driveway and Beth made a noise of protest.  
“What’re you doin?” She cried, playfully hitting him with her palm, “Keep goin!” Daryl climbed down from his bike and she followed suit.  
“I ain’t your chauffeur girl,” Daryl chided her with no real anger, “C’mon les check it out.”  
Beth followed after him as he set his crossbow on his shoulder, shaking her head. She took her knife from its sheath, poising it so she would be ready to take out any walkers. Sure enough, as they approached the building, one of them, male, came stumbling out from behind the building. Beth saw Daryl notching a bolt and rushed forward to beat him to it. She stabbed the walker through the eye swiftly, and pulled the knife out with little effort. She smiled over her shoulder at Daryl and he stared back, awe-struck.  
“What?” Beth shrugged innocently, “I been killing lots lately.”  
“Yeah but that’s through a fence,” Daryl took the bolt off and placed it back with the others, “Ain’t the same thing.”  
“I killed em on the road too,” Beth swung one of her feet in the dirt, “Makes me feel a lil better every now an then.”  
Daryl didn’t say anything, just stepped past her and over the corpse. It was a feeling he could understand.  
Daryl opened the door cautiously, letting out a whistle to attract any walkers that might be hiding inside. Silence was the only answer and he stepped inside. A sticky pool of rainbow liquid lay in the corner beneath the slurpee machines and dust had settled over everything inside, making it clear that this place had been undisturbed for quite some time. Beth came from behind him and started down one of the aisles. They were almost all empty, but he saw her tuck a couple of items into her pockets. Daryl smiled to himself as she picked up a tube of lipgloss. He turned away and went behind the counter. Sure enough, there were several packs of cigarettes left there. Thank god for DARE. Daryl could remember before this, how nobody smoked. His old man had called it a travesty, and said the most American thing you could do was smoke.  
Daryl took a couple of packets, steering clear of the American Spirits this time, and then turned around to check on Beth. To his surprise, she was right there, leaning against the other side of the counter. She had her palms on the plastic countertop, and her body was angled forward so that perky little ass of hers was sticking out. Daryl just looked at her for a moment before leaning forward to crush his mouth against hers. His hand wound into her hair, tugging slightly until their lips came apart.  
“You have any idea what you do to me girl?” Daryl whispered huskily.  
“I do try,” she replied cheekily, and he tugged on her ponytail a little harder. She whimpered in response, but he swallowed it with another passionate kiss.  
“Then get the fuck over here,” Daryl growled, releasing her. She scrambled eagerly but graceful as ever over the counter instead of walking around. She didn’t hop down, just wrapped her legs around him and pulled him in to kiss him again.  
“We really gonna do this here?” Beth panted when she pulled away.  
“I closed the door behind us,” Daryl replied, not looking at her as he went to work unbuckling his pants, “Its got a bell. We’ll hear anything comin in.”  
She took off her shirt and he gravitated to her instantly. He pushed her back, hard, against the counter and leaned over her. He ran his tongue over her stomach and up to her already taut nipples, groaning as he took one in his mouth. Beth’s hand wound into his hair and pulled a little.  
Daryl love what they had going. He had never enjoyed tearing into anyone, or being torn into, so much. He loved the fact that he could pin her down like this and just have his way with her. He was over feeling like a pervert. For Beth he was going to just be the best fuck she’d ever had.  
He pulled angrily at her shorts, yanking them down the her ankles. He looked down at her, lying akimbo on the counter of some dirty convenience store, looking like some kind of apocalyptic princess, and he leaned down to press a kiss against the inside of her knee. Beth felt a strange feeling come over, watching as he kissed his way up her thigh, like he was worshipping every inch of skin. His eyes were dark as they bored into hers, and he gently tugged off her panties. It sent a shiver down her back each time, how he could go from yanking her clothes off to looking at her like she was the sun itself. She let out a high pitched moan when his tongue delved into her, and her back arched off of the counter. She felt him laugh against her, and he dragged his tongue along her slowly. He kept going until Beth felt her knees shake. She was sure she’d accidentally crush his head and put a hand in his hair, pulling him back up to her so she could kiss him. He was out of breath, his lips swollen, and she could taste herself on his lips.  
He picked her up swiftly, and she gasped in surprise. He placed another kiss on her lips before setting her down. “Lean against the counter,” he whispered in her ear, his voice thick.  
“What?” Beth just stared up at him in confusion.  
“C’mon girl,” Daryl sighed, and turned her so his chest was against her back. He put his arm around her to hold her clit between his middle and index finger. “You said you ain’t never done it from behind,” he breathed in her ear, and she whimpered. He let go of her, pushing her shoulders down until her chest hit the counter. He pushed his pants down around his ankles and came up behind her, pressing his cock against the crack of her ass. She let out a groan and he smiled to himself. He took his erection in his hand and pressed it against her entrance before he leaned over her. He pressed an almost loving kiss between her shoulderblades and whispered, “Just tell me if I gotta stop.”  
She nodded, and he pressed himself forward into her. She let out a noise muffled by the counter. She turned her head to the side, letting her cheek lay against the sticky countertop, and he pushed the stray hairs out of her face. He pulled his hips back slowly before pushing into her again, and she closed her eyes. He kept going, watching her carefully as he slid more and more easily in and out of her. He stood up fully and pressed hard into her until she cried out.  
“You like that?” Daryl laughed, pulling slowly out of her only to thrust hard back.  
“Yes…” she breathed, “Right there...right there.”  
He abandoned all fears of hurting her and just focused on fucking her. It wasn’t long until she was practically screaming against the countertop. Daryl reached in front of her to draw gentle circles around her clit as she panted against the counter. He came not long after her, pulling out to spill all down her silky thigh.  
“Christ,” Daryl mumbled, and he leaned forward to press another kiss between her shoulder blades.  
She laughed breathily. “I don’t think I can walk back to the bike,” she pushed herself up onto her elbows and turned her head to look at him. He cupped her chin and pulled her face to his for a heated kiss.  
“That’s the best it’s ever been,” She whispered against his lips.  
“I do try,” he replied mockingly, imitating her voice.  
She shoved him playfully, and he stepped away from her. He reached down to pull his pants back up, smiling as she went in search of her underwear. She found a box of kleenex under the counter, and he could have sworn he got a little hard again just watching her wipe his cum off of her leg.  
“You want me to carry you outside princess?” Daryl teased Beth.  
“You wish you could carry me,” Beth replied smugly, buttoning her shorts.  
Daryl took that as a challenge, and he swept her up into his arms. She cried out in protest, but it quickly gave way to giggling. Daryl stared at her, the soft light of the sunrise coming in the windows. Again, he wanted to tell her he loved her. He wanted to tell her she had made his life into technicolor, that he felt all sorts of things for her he could never have even imagined. But her smile was already beginning to fade under his stare, so he just leaned forward and kissed her instead. She didn’t kiss him back at first, but she slowly surrendered. Of all the moments that had passed between them, this was the most intimate. She closed her eyes even after he pulled away, and Daryl cleared his throat.  
“C’mon,” he said uncomfortably, “Yer daddy’s gotta be awake by now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic has been getting harder and harder to write. I like to write a bunch of chapters and then upload them when I feel like I have "enough", and this is the last finished one that I have. I've got a lot going on with school so updates will be few and far between for a little while.


	10. "Yeah, and that worked out great"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this in my Intermediate Composition class because I know some of you guys really wanted an update! I'm crazy sick so I have an excuse to sit around and write. Hopefully I'll have even more to post soon c;

Beth didn’t leave his room. It made Daryl incredibly nervous but incredibly excited at the same time. He looked down at her, sleeping peacefully on his bottom bunk, even though it was at least 3 PM. Daryl didn’t cry much, but he knew how tired and achy it made you. So he let her sleep. He wasn’t sure if he should stay, but he ultimately decided that he felt like the pervert Maggie had accused him of being just standing there and watching her.  
He stepped out into the hot afternoon sun, lifting his hand to shade his eyes. He glanced around quickly, but Herschel wasn’t in sight. He wasn’t sure how long he’d be able to avoid Beth’s father without anyone noticing, but he would do whatever it took to not have to talk to him. He sat down at a table in the shade and lit up one of the cigarettes he had found this morning.  
He only got one puff in before Rick sat down across from him, his face obscured by smoke. He fanned it away, wrinkling his nose the way everyone always did when they saw him smoking.  
“Ain’t anybody ever told you,” Rick said with a smile, “You keep puffin on those things you’re gonna get lung cancer.”  
“If I live that long I’m gonna count that as a win,” Daryl replied easily. He flicked the ashes off the end and watched them skitter away across the concrete.  
Rick gave him an incredulous look, and Daryl could feel the judgement coming like rain on the wind. “How come you took Beth out this morning? You shoulda asked Herschel at the very least.”  
“Figure she’s old enough ta make her own decisions,” Daryl said, not looking at the man across from him.  
“She’s just a teenager Daryl,” Rick said with a sigh, “She don’t know what’s right for her. She ain’t old enough to-”  
“She ain’t a kid anymore,” Daryl interjected firmly, his eyes flicking to meet Rick’s. A little too firmly. Rick’s eyes narrowed at Daryl, looking him slowly up and down as if assesing his body language, and he could feel a sheen of sweat building on his forehead. “I just don’t understand why y’all are treatin her like a baby,” he continued quickly, trying to cover his ass, “She’s eighteen now. When I was that old I didn’t have nobody babying me.”  
“Yeah and that worked out great,” Rick responded.  
“Serves me well these days,” Daryl shook his head and ground the cigarette out on the corner of the table. He saw Rick shake his head at the burn mark he left behind but he didn’t mind it. He stood up to go, but as he did Herschel hobbled up to them. Daryl wasn’t sure how much more interrogating his little heart could take, but he nodded politely at Herschel and sat back down. Instead of sitting across from him the way Rick had, the man sat down right next to Daryl. Daryl swore that he could hear his heart pounding out of his chest.  
“Rick,” Herschel smiled at his companion, “Would you mind leavin us so I can chat with Daryl?”  
Daryl knew he was probably imagining it but Herschel’s voice reminded him a little of the godfather. He just hoped Herschel wouldn’t shoot him in front of all these people. Rick gave him an unsure smile back before standing. Daryl almost wanted to reach out and grab his hand and beg him not to go. Like he was his mom.  
“Daryl.” Herschel said, as if his name alone had some other meaning.  
“Herschel.” Daryl said back, unsure of what else to do.  
“I wanted to thank you,” Herschel folded his hands on the table in front of him, “But I’m also here to warn you.”  
Daryl said nothing, but looked at the older man quizzically.  
“I’ve seen you, hangin around Bethy,” Herschel continued, “Seen you two becoming friends. And I appreciate what you’ve done for her. I worry about her, just taking care of Judith all day. I don’t want her to be a teenager mother already,” he smiled at Daryl, but Daryl felt his windpipe tighten. “You’ve been givin her a little escape and I know she likes hanging out with you. Sides, I worry she won’t be able to make it in this world, and I figured you might help her with that.”  
The old man looked out at the fences, and a look of sadness overcame him.  
“I ain’t done nothing…” Daryl replied gruffly, “Just listen to her every now and then. Don know why she even talks to me.”  
“I do.”  
Daryl waited for Herschel to say more, but the old man just stared at him, his blue eyes somehow both calm and angry.  
“I think she’s more capable than y’all give her credit for,” Daryl cleared his throat, “We saw a walker this morning and she took it down real easy. Shocked even me.”  
“I need you to stay away from her,” Herschel pushed on, ignoring Daryl’s comment, “Beth just loves makin trouble for me, and I don’t want you gettin caught up in her childish mischief.”  
“It ain’t like that-”  
“I know you can’t see it, but I know my Beth.” Herschel interrupted curtly.  
Daryl suddenly had the urge to shout at Herschel. To tell him that he didn’t know Beth the way Daryl did. But he bit it back. It wouldn’t be right to say something like that to her father. He might have been raised like an animal but he knew when to keep quiet. Keeping quiet had kept him alive.  
“If she gives you any more trouble, I want you to just come to me,” Herschel said finally, and he stood with a little difficulty.  
Daryl said nothing. Daryl didn’t even look as Herschel limped away. He just sat, alone with his thoughts, trying to hold them all inside. He’d never had trouble keeping things inside until this whole thing with Beth started. But she brought out some impulsive idiocy in him that he was finding harder and harder to control.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge thanks to all the people that left comments and kudos. I am seriously flabbergasted by the number of people that have read this fic. I was on fanfiction.net for a while but I really didn't like the environment there and my fics were super unpopular (you know how ship wars can go. I also watch 100 and ship Bellarke, so I always seem to be on the side of the fandom that everyone is pissed off at). You guys are all so nice, I can hardly take it, and it's a huge contrast to the kind of comments I was getting before. Like I put this up yesterday and I was expecting there to be 0 views for at least a couple days but here you all are! It seriously means so much to me guys, I love you all. Like a couple comments might not seem like a huge deal to everyone else but I'm so grateful.  
> Also, I'm super new to this site and I'm having trouble with formatting. You all probably noticed how sometimes it's hard to tell where the paragraph breaks are. I've tried all sorts of stuff to fix it but I'm not that tech savvy so if anyone can offer some assistance to a damsel in distress.


	11. "You were the one beggin for it"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl's got something to say.

When Beth opened her eyes she was alone.   
She sat up slowly and stretched, staring at her surroundings in confusion. She didn’t remember laying down, and she definitely didn’t remember falling asleep. She had gone to Daryl’s room because she was sad and it felt like the only thing she really could do.   
She could see the telltale hues of sunset coming in through the window, so she laid back down. Daryl would probably be back soon, and he was the only person she wanted to see at the moment. She felt childish, hiding away from her father and pouting. But if they were going to treat her like a little girl then maybe she ought to act like one. As soon as Beth thought it she knew that it was a terrible way of thinking, and that it would never get her anywhere. But every now and then she felt she had the right to be upset.  
Her thoughts wandered to Daryl. She was probably getting him into a whole mess of trouble too. Between his fight with Maggie and the daggers her father had been throwing at him this morning, she wondered how he could possibly think this was all worth it. How he could possibly think she was worth it. Sure, she was cute enough, but how was he willing to risk ostracization just to fuck her?  
She rolled over onto her side, catching a whiff of Daryl on the sheets. She loved the way he smelled. Like leather and oil and cigarettes. Beth had always liked the smell of cigarettes. Her daddy wasn’t a smoker so she never grew up in a house that smelled like smoke. But occasionally she would catch a hint of it in the air as someone passed her in highschool, and she’d throw a debonair smile at whatever boys’ varsity jacket it was clinging to. It was like a magnet to Beth, and had gotten her in with the wrong crowd at school more than once.  
She laughed suddenly and bitterly at how little she had changed. She talked a big talk about being older and wiser, but she was still making whatever decision was likely to get her in the most trouble. Why couldn’t she have just stayed with Zach and lived the apocalyptic suburban nightmare everybody had expected from her? She just had to go after the most inappropriate man for her. A though rose to the surface, that it wasn’t just her need to make terrible decisions that had brought her here. That her and Daryl had too much in common for this to be pure mishap. But she pushed it away. She had enough on her mind dealing with all her self pity, she didn’t need to start digging through that mess.  
The privacy curtain twitched, and Daryl appeared in the doorway. He looked down at her with a smirk. “You still layin in bed like you own the damn thing?” He asked teasingly as he tossed his crossbow on the top bunk.  
Beth stretched and let out a groan into his pillow in response.  
“Lazy ass,” Daryl muttered, laughing to himself, “At least scoot over so I can sit down girl.”  
Beth complied and rolled onto her back. He sat down at the end of the bed and stared at the wall in front of him. Beth just looked at him for a minute, admiring his profile as he took a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.  
“No more last one bullshit,” Beth said, sitting upright, “Can I have one now?”  
“Ain’t you in enough trouble as is?” Daryl grumbled without looking back at her. He lit one up quickly and set both the pack and the lighter on his cabinet.   
“Just one puff then?” Beth insisted, leaning closer to him. Her face was mere inches from his shoulder and she suddenly felt the desire to press her lips against his tan skin. She could see a small tattoo peeking out from under the leather vest he always wore and she poked at it, pushing the fabric away to get a better look.  
“Ey,” Daryl warned her with a stern look, “Stop that.” He brushed her hand away before releasing a cloud of smoke. She stared at him through the haze for a moment.  
“How come you never take it off?”   
Daryl turned his head slowly to fix her with a look. “If I let you have a smoke will you shut the hell up?”  
“I tell you everything,” Beth mumbled, a little upset that Daryl knew her, physically and emotionally, but she couldn’t even check out his tattoos. “Is it a tattoo of a dick? That’d be funny. Nina’s crazy aunt had a tattoo of a dick on her thigh. Wouldn’t blame you for covering that shit up.”  
“Jesus Christ girl,” Daryl sighed angrily, “I ain’t got no tattoo of a dick. The fuck you take me for?”  
A plume of smoke poured out of his nostrils like an angry dragon and she smiled to herself. She held her hand out pointedly. He looked at her in confusion and she made the motion of zipping her lips. He rolled his eyes and handed the smoldering cigarette to her. For someone who liked the smell of cigarettes so much, Beth was surprisingly light on knowledge of how to actually smoke them. She inspected it carefully, trying to think up a plan of action before Daryl spoke up.  
“Put it to your lips and just take a little breath, like through a straw,” he explained, “Just hold it in your mouth for a sec so it can cool off.”  
He nodded at her and Beth did as he said. The smoke tasted a lot different than it smelled. Like putting a match in your mouth. Beth wrinkled her nose and Daryl let out a throaty chuckle.  
“Now take a breath in, let it push the smoke into your lungs.”  
Beth took a deep breath and instantly regretted it. It was like pouring hot ash down her windpipe, which she supposed she was literally doing. She coughed and hacked, tears stinging at her eyes. Daryl laughed loudly at her, smacking her on the back when she leaned over.  
“You get used to it,” Daryl said, still laughing to himself. He took the cigarette from Beth’s hands and took a drag from it. She narrowed her eyes at him and how easily he could do that. He blew a cloud of smoke at her in response and she couldn’t help but laugh herself between coughs.  
“That’s disgusting!” She cried, fanning at the air between them.  
“You were the one beggin for it,” Daryl looked sideways at her for a moment, “C’mere girl.” He motioned for her to come closer. She quirked an eyebrow at him, but pushed the covers back so she could sit next to him, her legs tucked beneath her.  
“Gonna show you something called a shotgun. Open your mouth a lil.” Daryl gave her a mischievous smile that made her stomach tighten. He took a drag from the cigarette, then turned to her, cupping her chin as if to give her a kiss. She closed her eyes instinctively, but she felt the smoke pass between their lips. The smoke had certainly cooled off more than when she had done it, because when she breathed it in this time, it hardly burned at all. Daryl pulled his face back as she let out a steady stream of smoke. Beth couldn’t think of anything to say, she just stared at Daryl.  
If that had happened with anyone else, like if Jimmy had, for some reason, asked if he could blow smoke into her mouth, she would have thought it was gross. But she almost felt like Daryl had breathed a piece of himself into her. She felt incredibly close to him in that moment, beyond the fact that their faces were inches apart. She cleared her throat and broke eye contact with him. The way he was looking at her these days made her so afraid she could hardly breath.   
But Daryl held her face again, forcing her to look at him. Her heart started slamming in her chest, and he could feel its steady pulse under his fingers. He pulled her in for a kiss. She answered eagerly. She wasn’t great at the meaningful staring they had been engaging in lately, but kissing, she could do. She climbed over him to straddle his lap and she could feel him smiling against her.  
“You know,” Daryl whispered between kisses, “Your daddy told me that I should let him know if you give me any more trouble.”   
She leaned away from him suddenly, and his hands went to her back to hold her steady.  
“Really?” Beth asked, her eyes wide, “I mean, I didn’t really think he’d picked up on anything with us but I was still worried.”  
Daryl pressed his lips together and thought for a moment. “Well, he did also tell me to stay away from you.”  
Beth chuckled at this. Daryl narrowed his eyes at her, but she didn’t really seem to notice. She started kissing his neck, and he tried futilely to hold back his protests.  
“He thinks you like me you know,” Daryl cleared his throat.  
“I do like you Daryl,” Beth giggled as she moved to kiss the spot behind his ear, “You’re fun to talk to. You’re a good friend.”  
Daryl shook his head. She took his face in her hands to kiss him again but he turned his face away.  
“What’s wrong?” Beth sat back. The look of annoyance on her face was what set him off, as if the fact that he didn’t feel like making out was some huge inconvenience to her.  
He felt the anger building inside of him like a fire. He didn’t know why he felt this way about her. Hell, he didn’t even really want to. It’d make his life a hell of a lot easier if he wasn’t stuck on a fickle teenage girl.  
But she must have seen what was going on in his head because she ran her thumb across his cheek so tenderly he almost missed it. “Hey…” Beth whispered, “I chatter to you about all my shit problems. Spill the beans so I can help you out.”  
Her gentleness ate away at his anger, and he was left with only what was directed at himself. Why was he pushing her like this? Why couldn’t he stop?  
“Don’t worry about-”  
“Beth,” Daryl interjected and she fell silent, “I think I might....God I feel like a fuckin teenager.”  
A blush crept into Beth’s cheeks and she bit her lip. She looked like she wanted to leave, like she wanted to stop him and run for the hills, so he pressed on before she could do so.  
“I love you…” Daryl whispered, trying his hardest to hold her eyes with his even though he wanted to look away, “You told me to be straight with you but I ain’t told you even half the things I think about.”  
Beth didn’t say anything, just stared at him with her mouth slightly open. He saw the fear in her eyes and he knew he had made a colossal mistake.  
“I-I’m sorry,” Daryl hurried to say, but she had begun shaking her head, “I didn’t-”  
“We said.” Beth said plainly as if it was a complete thought. She climbed off of him like he was contagious. “We. Said!”  
“Beth,” Daryl said her name like a prayer but she stared at the floor as if he’d said nothing.  
“I told you I didn’t want you ta be my boyfriend or nothin.”  
“It ain’t really like that with us and you know it,” Daryl replied sternly, grabbing her elbow to keep her from leaving. “We ain’t gotta call it that or nothin.”  
“What do you wanna call it Daryl?” She looked up at him and the hurt look in her eyes caused him to grow angry all over again. She was the one rejecting him and she had the audacity to act all hurt.   
“I don’t fuckin know Beth!” His voice started rising and he swore he saw her flinch. “I’m just tellin you how I feel. Why’s it even matter anyways? We ain’t gotta put a label on it if that’s what scares you.”  
“You’re the one that’s scaring me right now,” Beth hissed angrily at him. She tried to twist out of his hold but he only brought her closer.  
“Why?” He whispered, his face close enough for him to kiss her, “Because I’m being too real for you?”  
Beth opened her mouth to say something that he knew would be nasty in response, but she was cut short by a baby’s wailing. She looked over her shoulder at the sound, then back at Daryl. He released her arm roughly, practically pushing her away from him. He felt a twinge of guilt at handling her that way, but she didn’t look hurt now. She gave him a cold look, then turned on her heel and left. He could hear her boots clanging down the metal stairs like she was running. Before he knew what he was doing, before he could stop himself, he swept the pack of cigarettes from from where they sat and threw them on the ground with all his might. He ground at them with his heels until the orange tobacco leaves covered his floor. Both hands went up to his head and he squeezed until he could see stars. Anger tore through him, unsatisfied by his childish display with the cigarettes. He started kicking blindly until his right foot connected with the metal cabinet and he kept kicking, throwing all of his rage into his foot. Glenn stumbled into the room within moments, and grabbed his shoulders. Daryl pushed him off easily, but Rick followed suit.  
“Daryl what the hell are you doing?” Rick growled.  
Daryl just shook his head between pants, and pushed past him. He could hear Beth singing to Judith downstairs, but he went in the opposite direction, following the tunnels until one finally brought him out into the humid night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is my second favorite, because I read this one fic (I'm so sorry, I looked for it so I could credit the author but I've read sooooo many I couldn't find it!) where Daryl did a shotgun to Beth and it took my breath away. I know some people think shotguns are gross (and they're usually something you do with pot) but when you do them with someone you love it can be really intimate.   
> Anyways. Thanks again to any readers out there! I'm so excited every time I see another hit.  
> I really want to change the name of this fic (Never Before was a temporary name, I wasn't expecting anyone to even find it for a while) I'm not sure what the protocol is for that because I've always finished writing and then posted so I always had a set title. I'm just going to go for it and hopefully no one has trouble finding it or anything.


	12. "I don't feel any different"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth has a heart-to-hear with her sister

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got the inspiration for the name of this fic from the song I mention in this chapter. I would highly recommend checking it out, if you've never heard it before. It's one of my very favorites, and it's on my writing playlist so many a scene in this fic was written to its tune.

It went without saying that things between them were over. Beth kept thinking they’d talk about it and things would get better, but she didn’t even see Daryl for at least a week. Everyone else was talking about how he must be tracking a deer, but Beth knew better. She found herself, sitting on the picnic table overlooking where she was the day he first spoke to her, nearly every night. She would sit there and feed the baby, watching the line of trees just hoping he would appear.  
She didn’t exactly feel like she was in the wrong, but she certainly felt like she had made some kind of mistake. Every other time they had fought it had been over so quickly and she had never been left hanging like this. She didn’t have to think on this fact for long before she realized that it was because he had always surrendered. She would get angry and push him away and then he would practically lay down so she could walk all over him. Beth was filled with regret. She felt sick all the time and she couldn't sleep. Her whole body seemed to hurt with missing him, and when he finally returned it wasn’t a moment too soon.  
She was alone that night because someone else was watching the baby. She had her CD player on the picnic table beside her, its earbuds tucked safely in her ears as they blasted What’s Up? by 4 Non Blondes. He emerged from the trees, his eyes falling to hers from across the yard as if he had been expecting her to be sitting there. He was actually dragging a deer, and Beth felt her heart clench a little. It was a little sick that she was hurt by the fact that he hadn’t just gone off into the woods to wallow in his sadness and think about her. But she just assumed he had been doing the same thing as her.  
She fought the urge to run to him. She didn’t even know what she was supposed to say, she just knew she wanted him back. She suddenly found her kicking herself for not using any of their time apart to think of what she would do when he actually came back.  
She couldn’t tell him she loved him back. She couldn’t play around with him like that. She couldn’t pretend to be what she was not. But what did all this pain mean if he was absolutely nothing to her? She decided that she would ask for his friendship back. He didn’t have to sleep with her anymore or anything, but she couldn’t stand being without him anymore.  
She stood as he passed by, but he just kept moving. He didn’t throw so much as a nod in her direction, just rounded the corner of the building, dragging the carcass behind him. Beth didn’t even know she had been wringing her hands, but they fell to her sides.  
“Hey…” Maggie said quietly, stepping out from behind her.  
“Hey,” Beth said as lightly as she could. Normally she would fake a smile for her sister, but she kept her eyes trained away from Maggie. She felt a hot tear slip down her cheek and she pressed the back of her hand to it as subtly as she could.  
“I ain’t daddy,” Maggie sighed, walking around Beth so that they were face to face. She reached up to gently wipe away the tears from her little sister’s cheek. “You ain’t gotta hide from me.”  
“I do though,” Beth replied, and she couldn’t hold back a sob, “That’s why I miss him so goddam much.”  
Maggie looked at her sister in pity, which was the opposite of helpful. “You wanna at least tell me what happened? I know you lost a friend but I can try to fill his spot for now.”  
Beth sniffed. She didn’t really want to talk about it, but she at least hoped Maggie would know what to do. Their relationship had been rough, but through all of it Maggie really was looking out for her. “He said he loved me…” Beth said quietly, staring at the ground, “I dunno. I panicked. I got mad and he got mad and I ran out of the room.”  
“What did you say to him?”  
“Not much of anything really. He was the one who did all the talking. He kept trying to push me, and he said ‘we don’t have to use any labels if they scare you’. But I was just scared of him you know? I don’t know what but he scared the living hell out of me.”  
“Might be cheesy, but it sounds like you were afraid of how much he loves you,” Maggie crossed her arms over her chest and gave Beth a pointed look. She didn’t say anything in response, so Maggie plugged on. “I’m sorry that this happened Beth...I’m sorry about your mom or Jimmy or whatever it was that made you so scared of this.”  
“It was daddy...:” Beth interjected softly, and she looked up at her sister through her tears.  
Maggie looked down at her in disbelief. “He didn’t…”  
“Nah he didn’t hit me or nothin,” Beth shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself, “He wouldn't. He didn’t do anything. That’s the problem. He was always worried about you or tryin to help Shaun. Before this, I went a whole week without sleepin in my bed and nobody noticed. I didn’t sneak out for parties or nothin, I would just walk along the road. Sleep on benches.” Beth’s eyes glazed over and her sister watched her intently, “I would walk on that road and when I saw those headlights...Sometimes you just think about bad stuff.”  
“Hey,” Maggie put a hand on her sister’s shoulder fearfully, “It’s alright. It ain’t like that anymore Beth.”  
“I don’t feel any different Maggie,” Beth said, her voice cracking in a million places.  
Maggie didn’t know what to do or say, so she grabbed her sister, crushing her against her chest as if she could somehow protect her from all the thoughts in her head. Beth let her do so, knowing that it was completely unfair for her to dump all of that on her sister and then expect her to actually be able to fix it. She just missed being able to talk to Daryl.  
“I feel like I did something wrong,” Beth finally said against Maggie’s shoulder, “What do I do? How do I get him to talk to me again.”  
“Oh, Bethy,” Maggie sighed and released her, “I dunno. Men are stubborn. Sometimes you think they just want a place to stick it, then they get all mad about other stuff. Just tell him how you feel.”  
“But I’m not even sure what I’m feeling!” Beth cried.  
“Sounds like you’ve got some thinking to do,” Maggie patted her shoulder. She didn’t want to leave Beth all alone, especially after what she’d said. But it felt like the right thing to do, so she walked back inside the prison.  
Beth sat back down on the picnic table. She picked up the CD player again and put the earbuds back in. She laid back on the table and allowed herself to imagine Daryl was laying there beside her, staring up at the stars. She wasn’t sure when she drifted off, but when she woke, sticky with dew and sore from sleeping on the table, she had a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate to do this to all of you, buuuuut I might not be updating again for a while. I actually have a lot of stuff written, but it's going in a direction that a lot of people have expressed distaste for in relation to other fics. So I've gotta get together the balls to post some chapters that I know will piss off at least one of you. I am a fragile flower so I don't like the idea of people not liking my fics. But it feels natural for the story to progress this way, and I also want it to be suuuuuuuper long so shit's gotta keep happening. Anyways. Just keep an eye out and when I get the courage, I'll update c:


	13. "Saint Daryl, who can apparently do no wrong"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth confronts Daryl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I literally just posted a chapter with a note that said "I won't be updating for a while" but I'm weak and I know how much I crave updates. Also this chapter is pretty safe, and I realized that I couldn't just leave you guys with absolutely no Bethyl.

Daryl stiffened when he saw her shadow fall over the picnic table where he sat. It was the same one she had been sitting at the night before when he got back. She had been outside alone, just staring at him like the deer had right before he took it down. She had stood when he walked by, like she expected him to say something to her. But Daryl was over it. He’d made enough of a fool out of himself, chasing her around like some lovesick little boy. He’d rather die than go back to her.  
It had been hard for him at first. After his little hulk out, he’d only gone back in the prison to get his crossbow. The first day was the worst. He couldn’t find any tracks and he couldn’t get Beth out of his mind. He wanted to go back, to run back into the prison and straight into her room so he could tell her what an idiot he’d been. But the second day he woke somehow more at peace. He didn’t have to internalize all of Beth’s bullshit. He was done letting her walk all over him. He found the tracks that night, and a triumphant smile had passed over his lips.  
So when he saw her shadow, with the tell tale long legs and ponytail, he didn’t instantly turn around and begin grovelling. He was back to who he was supposed to be, who he’d always been, and she’d have to deal with it.  
“Hey you,” she said softly. He flinched at that, then cursed himself for letting himself slip already. It just reminded him of the last time, when he’d been cleaning a rabbit and she’d come up on him in those little shorts. He told himself that’s what he would miss. He’d miss getting his dick wet, and that was it.  
“What do you want this time?” He said, same as last time, but this time there was no teasing note in his voice.  
She didn’t reply, just walked around the table until she was standing in front of him. She looked pale, and her eyes were rimmed by dark circles.  
“You hear me girl?” He prompted at her lack of response.  
“Don’t be a dick,” She squinted against the sun and wrapped her arms around her body. There was a chill in the air that was unusual for Georgia so early in the fall.  
“Hmph,” Daryl made a noise in response.  
“Can we talk?” Beth looked at the ground and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear.  
“No,” Daryl replied gruffly, “Told Rick I’d go out to the wall.” He stood, not looking at her, and started off towards the fence. It was a lie, but he could use killing a couple of walkers. Maybe it would help him blow off some steam.  
But instead of taking the hint, she followed after him, her damn cowboy boots scuffing against the concrete. “Okay…” Beth said, practically running to keep up with him, “How about I talk then and you can just listen?”  
Daryl stopped dead in his tracks and let out a bitter laugh.  
“Something funny?” Beth asked, challenging him with her eyes.  
“Just if you’re the one doing all the talking and I’m the one sitting here and just taking it, it ain’t no different than it’s always been with you.”  
Daryl started walking again, hoping that his words would stop her. But she just ran up behind him again. As they passed Michonne, she squinted against the sun to stare at them. He wondered if Beth knew how much attention she was drawing to them, or if she simply didn’t care. She was being such a child, throwing a tantrum like he was denying her candy in the grocery store. Of course, he couldn’t really expect much more from someone as young as her. Beth practically was a child.  
When they reached the fence Daryl already had his knife out, and he went to work on the walkers. Beth took a step back in surprise, but he paid her no mind, just went at their skulls like his life depended on it.  
“You gonna fuckin talk or what?” Daryl practically shouted, without even turning to look at her.  
Beth was quiet for a moment. But when she finally piped up, it wasn’t the bossy, attitude filled voice he was used to. “Nah,” she said just loud enough for him to hear, “You were right. If I’m the one talking it ain’t any different than it was before. And I don’t want that no more.”  
She waits there while he takes down yet another walker. She expects him to say something but he all but ignores her. He was the one pushing her all the time, pushing and pulling her to him until she felt so suffocated she ran away. But when she’d had the space to figure out what she wanted, she offered herself to him and he didn’t say a thing.  
“That it?” Daryl said at last. He stopped, his knife ready to strike again in a moment and his chest heaving. His hair was plastered to his face by sweat and in need of a good cutting, but she still thought he was incredibly handsome.  
“I guess…” Beth swallowed but the lump in her throat stayed. “You ain’t got nothin to say?”  
He just shook his head and turned back to the walkers. He got one through the eye, but when it fell back, his hand slipped and the knife stayed where it was lodged. “Fuck!” He shouted, and he kicked the fence. Without his weapon, he was left alone with the girl, woman, whatever. He put a hand on each hip and stared at the ground, holding back his words. He wouldn’t give her the satisfaction.  
“I missed you…” Beth said quietly, and he snapped his head up to look at her. She took a step back at the feral look in his eyes, but she couldn’t stop the words from tumbling out. “You were right about me being scared of you being too real. I mean, I ain’t gonna pretend to be happy that you sprung that on me, but I reacted badly and I shouldn’t have gotten so upset.”  
“You gonna tell me you love me now?” Daryl asked coldly.  
Beth didn’t say anything, just hugged herself tighter.  
“That’s fuckin fine,” Daryl turned to look at the walkers, “Just as well cuz that’d probably just piss me off more.”  
“God Daryl,” Beth sighed angrily, “I’m trying to apologize. I thought that you wanted this. You were always the one trying to get me to be with you for real, and now here I am, tellin you that I might not love you, but I missed you. That you mean somethin to me. Ain’t that worth nothin to you?”  
“No,” Daryl shook his head and took a couple steps closer to her, “No that don’t mean a damn thing to me. I ain’t playin no ‘Beth says’ anymore with you. You can whine and cry like the child you are but I ain’t doin whatever you want this time. You decide outta nowhere that now, after you rejected me, that now you wanna give me a half-assed apology?”  
“It wasn’t half-assed you dick,” Beth spit back at him, and instead of taking a step back, this time she walked straight up to him. “In the words of Saint Daryl, who can apparently do no wrong, I’m just tellin you how I feel.” She imitated his heavier Southern drawl as her hand came up to poke his chest angrily.  
Against his will, Daryl felt himself grow harder at her close proximity and that ridiculous accent. He gritted his teeth and cursed his own body.  
“I just-” Beth said after a moment, and Daryl could see the tears welling up in her eyes, “I don’t know what’s goin on with me. I want you back Daryl. We don’t have to sleep together. It was a stupid decision in the first place. I just...I can’t go on not talking to you every day.”  
“I ain’t a gumball machine where you can just put all your fucked up thoughts in and get sex out,” Daryl said, still breathing hard but his words were far calmer, “I told you, I ain’t doin this with you anymore. That means no sex, no talkin, no nothin. I ain’t interested in anythin you got to offer girl.” Daryl stepped backward so that their chests were no longer touching. He backed up a couple more steps before turning on his heels and loping up the hill. He didn’t look behind him, but he didn’t hear the familiar sound of those cowboy boots following him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, now for real, I probably won't post much after this.  
> I might. It depends. If you guys are leaving lots of "please update!" comments, then I'm not gonna lie, I'll probably update sooner. Also I kinda live for updating now so.


	14. "Now it was his turn"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is very, very short. I apologize for that, but it just felt right to break it apart there.  
> If you guys can't tell, there's a little bit of a time jump here. Remember at the very beginning in chapter 1, how they had already escaped the prison together? Well, that's where we're at now. They've been out in the woods fro five days now, and the prison fell approximately a month after the last chapter.

They hadn’t spoken for a month and a week. Beth had figured it out. It couldn’t possibly be exact, but she knew it was close. It was dark so early these days, and even though it was hot as ever during the day, the nights had a chill that promised fall was on its way.  
She looked at Daryl over the flames he had made. She looked at him all the time. Not the way that she used to, like a schoolgirl sneaking peeks at her crush. No, she blatantly stared at him these days, daring him to look back at her. Maybe if he looked at her he would see it in her eyes, and then she wouldn’t have to tell him.  
“Eat.” Daryl said suddenly. It still wasn’t to her. It was directed at the flames, the words burning up before they could reach her.  
She ignored him. She wasn’t hungry. In fact, the smell of the burnt snake made her stomach turn. She stood, dropping her food on the ground next to him before she walked away. At this point, she would have danced with joy if he had started yelling at her. She wanted him to grab her by the arm, if only so he would touch her again, and tell her she was being an ungrateful brat. But he said nothing to her as she lay down in their little lean-to.  
Beth didn’t feel as numb as she thought she would. She could remember when she was twelve, and her pet horse, Peaches, had gotten sick. She had begged her father to do whatever he could for her, but eventually they’d had to put her down. She didn’t remember feeling sad or even crying. She’d just sat there, wide-eyed, feeling absolutely nothing. Now Beth had lost a lot more than a pet in the last week but she didn’t feel numb. She felt angry, all the time. She felt it like embers under her skin, closely following Daryl through the trees, washing off in the creek, and now, laying on her side under a piece of worn canvas.  
She knew it wasn’t fair of her to be so angry with Daryl. She wasn’t exactly talking to him either. But she felt that she’d said all that she could for now that last time. During their last fight. Now it was his turn.  
Beth rolled over to face him, hoping to fix him with another glare. But when she did, he was already looking at her, that familiar expression on his face. His eyes were narrowed, his lips open slightly, just like the face he made when he was taking aim with his crossbow. She expected his eyes to dart away but they stayed on her. He was challenging her back, staring her down the way she had been doing to him for five days now. She couldn’t stand it, how incredibly small his nearly black eyes made her feel. She blinked, and looked down at her hands on the bedroll next to her. She heard him let out a low chuckle and she nearly blew up at him. But she focused her anger inward, the way she had been for a month and a week. She knew she wouldn’t be able to stop the tears, the ones that had come almost every night. So she let the tears roll down her cheeks, not bothering to keep it a secret from Daryl or wipe them away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good news! I've decided I'm just gonna nut up and post regularly. If people don't like where I'm going to take this story then they don't have to read right? I'm weak. I'm on a total high, I just wrote Chapter 17 and I just want you guys to read it so bad!  
> It's going to get a lot heavier from here out. Daryl and Beth are alone and they're both being stubborn. The fact that they aren't talking means there's a lot of inward reflection.


	15. "Don't leave me alone"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING  
> There's some reference to self harm in this chapter. I myself have some trouble reading that stuff so I tiptoed around it a little. Sorry if that makes the story a little to vague at times.

Daryl thought it had been hard, watching the prison disappear behind them in a pillar of smoke. But the day that they abandoned the bike broke his heart.  
Beth stood in the middle of the road, tapping her sassy little foot to tell him to hurry it up without using her words. She wasn’t much of a talker anymore. He leaned over that precious motorcycle, running his hand over the leather seat, his jaw clenching for only a moment over the spot where Beth’s belt had scratched it once. It was an accident, he knew that, but the tiniest things were setting him off these days, and the amount of anger they incited in him was directly proportional to how close they were to Beth.  
He looked sideways at her, standing there in the sun, the skin on her bare shoulders peeling and raw. She was looking at him, same as ever. Usually he felt too uncomfortable to do anything about it, but the other night she’d been staring at him and he stared back, just to see what she would do. It had the opposite effect of what he was hoping for. She sobbed for hours, until he nudged her, indicating that it was her turn to watch. There were times when he thought about saying something to her to try to help her through this. But he was hurting too, and seeing her smug little face every day just pissed him off more. Her daddy had been right. If he wasn’t watching her back every minute she would have died that first day.  
Daryl patted the bike one final time and strolled into the street where she was standing. She held a water bottle out to him wordlessly, and he shook his head. He thought about how that would be their first and last interaction of the day until they switched guard duty. It was so sad, that even though they had lost everything, they couldn’t let go of all the things that had gone down between them. But as fucked up as the situation was, Daryl was too stubborn to break it. He had the balls to admit he was being stubborn. He was being weak. But no matter how sad it was, it was also easy. He had found that not talking to Beth put them on the same page, and that was infinitely easier than talking to her and having her be on a whole other planet. It was when she cried that it got hard for him.  
They spent the rest of that day on the road, looking for a car. Daryl hated being on the road. It was too open. He liked the woods, where only a tracker could really tell one square foot from the next, where they were shaded by a soft green canopy. So that night, when Beth plopped down her knapsack and started making camp in the middle of the road, he wasn’t having it.  
“Not here.” He said plainly, shaking his head at her.  
She looked up at him from where she was crouching, her blue eyes narrowing at him in defiance. He suddenly felt his dick twitch against the fabric of his boxers and he gritted his teeth. He had been standing close to her, and her face was just about level with...In short, it had been a long time. And something about not being able to have her made even the tangled mess she called hair and her red-rimmed eyes look sexy. He cleared his throat and turned away from her, hoping that she hadn’t seen as a blush burned all the way up to his ears.  
He started walking towards the woods, but he didn’t hear her following. He stopped where the road became grass, holding his breath while he gave her a couple minutes to catch up. But he didn’t hear any movement at all. He turned around to look at her, and she was still in the middle of the road, sitting cross legged while she worked on opening a can of peas. He let out a sharp whistle and she stiffened. It was too late, but he realized after a moment that that might not have been the best course of action. He stalked back over to where she was sitting, looming over her for only a moment before he let himself speak.  
“C’mon girl,” he said sternly, “Get up no. I said not here.”  
She didn’t say anything, just kept stabbing the top of the can with her knife. He flinched with every blow. That girl was going to cut herself one of these days.  
“Hey, I said-” Daryl began, but he stopped when she held up her middle finger in his direction. Daryl could have sworn he felt steam coming out of his ears.  
“I ain’t playin’ around girl!” He warned. When she still didn’t budge, he grabbed the wrist holding the knife and yanked. She immediately dropped it, her eyes going wide in surprise as he tried to pull her to her feet.  
But as he pulled her arm up higher, those ratty little string bracelets she wore fell down her forearm, revealing several fresh, red lines on her wrist. She saw his eyes go to them, and then to her own eyes, and she started squirming, trying to get out of his grasp.  
“Let me go!” She started screaming like a wild animal, and Daryl worried for a moment about all the walkers she was probably attracting. But he held fast. “Get your fucking hands off of me!” She kicked at him like a wild animal, but he succeeded in pulling her to her feet.  
“You fuckin kidding me girl?” He hissed, pulling her towards him, “Are you fuckin joking with me?”  
She went back to saying nothing, she just narrowed her eyes at him. But he could see the tears brimming in them. Keeping a fast hold on her arm, he bent down to grab her bag. He left her knife and the can of peas in the middle of the road and dragged her off in the directions of the tree line.  
She didn’t offer much resistance after her initial tantrum, but he didn’t like how hot her skin felt under his hand. There was a strange look in her eye, as if she was almost glad he was mad at her, like she was glad he was dragging her through the trees. She didn’t want to get caught, he could tell that by the way she’d looked at him and the way she’d reacted. Plus, it just wasn’t Beth. She had never wanted attention from anyone; she was content to slip through life unnoticed.  
He stopped them not far into the woods, having somewhat recovered from his rage but still seething. He let her go awkwardly, and she let her arm fall limply to her side. He almost went to go get firewood the way he always did, but then he remembered that he’d left her knife in the road so she had no way of defending herself. He knew he couldn’t stop her from doing it if that’s what she really wanted, but he sure as hell wasn’t just going to hand his knife over to her. It didn’t feel right.  
“C’mon,” he grunted at her, and this time she followed complacently.  
That night he let her build the fire. Usually he just went ahead and got to it first, but this time he sat back, waiting to see if she’d take the hint. After a moment she did, and without complaining, she set to the task. He watched carefully as she piled the kindling and stacked the wood around it. He always made a teepee out the bigger logs and set the smaller ones inside once the kindling got going, but Beth made a log cabin out of the logs, setting the sticks on the inside with the kindling on top, so that when it burned through the kindling it would set the sticks on fire. That was smart, and he wondered where she had learned it. He felt a strange feeling pour through him like ice water as the flames grew and her mouth drew into a small triumphant smile. She sat back on her haunches for a moment before reaching up to release her hair from its ponytail. He was far from forgiving her, but he wanted nothing more than to kiss her.  
He pulled his last pack of cigarettes from his vest pocket, turning it over in his hands as he remembered the day he’d found them. It had been the last good day before they’d both royally fucked up. He peeled back the layer of plastic and flipped the top. He stared down at the cigarettes for a moment, then pulled out two of them. He set one at the corner of his mouth and held the other out to Beth. She stared at it like a foreign object.  
“It’s good...stress release,” Daryl mumbled. She glanced at him quickly, like a skittish animal, and took it from him.  
He leaned forward to light his cigarette in the fire and she followed suit. He watched her sit back and set it against her lips. She took a small breath, releasing it in a cloud of smoke several moments later. He was impressed by her lack of coughing, and he smiled to himself as he took a drag of his own. After a moment of tense silence they were surrounded by clouds of smoke that somehow made him feel comfortable enough to speak again.  
“Don’t leave me alone Beth,” he said, not really to her but to the night air. He’d been doing that a lot lately, but he figured it was better than saying nothing like she did. He hoped that this at least would reach her somehow.  
“Ain’t gonna kill myself or nothin if that’s what you mean…” she said quietly, her voice crackling like she was on a distant radio station.  
He leaned towards her, his eyes trained on the ground, and held out his arm. He pointed out the spots, just inside his wrist, where he used to grind out cigarettes when it all got to be too much. The first one had been after his mother’s funeral; the last one had been after Merle.  
“I know better’n anyone you’re thinkin bout it,” Daryl sighed, leaning back against his pack. He looked sideways at her, and she was already looking back at him, her blue eyes wide as saucers. She just shook her head in response before grinding out her half-smoked cigarette on the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going home this weekend!  
> For any high school students out there thinking about going to college, DON'T DO IT. You will never see your dogs again. Just kidding, please do go to college. Your dogs will not forget you.   
> Sad to say that also means that I might not be updating for a couple days. I might still update though, because it's like my favorite part of each day. I love getting comments on each chapter from you guys. Keep it up I'm feeling the love!


	16. "Every thought these days went back to Daryl"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth finally talks to Daryl, but he might not like what she has to say

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another shortie. But uh, big stuff is on the line!  
> Trigger warning for another small mention of self harm.  
> I don't know, I don't like the idea of Beth just suddenly feeling suicidal. In my headcanon, she struggled with depression long before the apocalypse.

Beth could admit it might have been naive to think that after their moment in the woods everything between them would suddenly be better. Things went back to the same between them immediately, and in the morning it was as if nothing had happened.   
Except, that is, for the fact that Daryl Dixon never let her have a moment to herself anymore. She wasn’t sure at first, what he had meant when he had asked her not to leave him all alone. She had thought that maybe, he wanted her, not just somebody. But he was so set on watching her that she became more and more sure that he didn’t want her, he just didn’t want to be alone out here. That stung a little, but she could hardly blame him. She didn’t want to be alone either.  
That’s how she ended up following him through the brush, tiptoeing as quietly as she could over a labyrinth of crunching leaves and snapping sticks. He held his crossbow at eye level, watching the deer as it moved through the trees. He’d been trying to line up the shot for an hour, and Beth’s feet were killing her. She thought about leaving him and walking back to camp, but she didn’t want to risk him abandoning chase and going after her. She needed to eat something other than canned vegetables, and the deer was one of the first animals they’d seen in days.   
She let her mind wander, if only for something more interesting to do. But as soon as she did, she regretted it. Every thought these days went back to Daryl. You would think spending every minute of every day with him would make her tired of Daryl, but it was quite the opposite. She craved him, needed him, in the way she never had before. It was sexual, sure, but she needed him in other ways too.  
Beth had a secret that was burning through her like wildfire. She kept trying to put it out, but the only thing that ever gave her a reprieve was grief soaked tears. She would douse the flames with thoughts of her father and her sister and her home. Thoughts of all the things she had lost. But it was always there, among those embers of hatred under her skin. They mingled, making Beth sweat day in and day out. She didn’t feel comfortable in her own skin. She woke cold and sweaty, hungry and sick, weak but still holding onto her resolve.  
She watched those angels wings dip between the ever present hues of green. Sometimes, she felt like lighting a literal wildfire, she was so sick of these stupid trees. She would burn half of Georgia down if it meant she could get this fire out of her belly. Her fingers wound around the empty sheath on her belt loop, where her knife had been. It had been stupid of her, she knew that. But Daryl had been sleeping in the tent and she had suddenly felt so very alone. And her mind had somehow fallen to those days, two years ago now, before the apocalypse. When she hadn’t known what it would take to get her father’s attention. It had always been incredibly calming to her, not in the sense that somehow the pain made her feel better. But she’d wipe away the blood, gingerly patting those delicate little rubies and placing a gauze bandage over them. It had made her feel good, that she could take care of herself.   
That was part of the reason why she’d kept it from Daryl for so long. It was no secret that she liked to feel like she was in control. She liked that she could keep it to herself and take care of it all on her own. But now it felt like it was crawling out of her throat, begging to be set free. She needed help.   
“Daryl…”  
She hardly even knew she had spoken aloud.  
“Daryl,” She said his name again, slightly louder, even though her throat felt so tight she could barely breathe. He slowly put a finger to his lips, and she suddenly saw that he was getting ready to take his shot. But she had already put the wheels in motion and she couldn’t have stopped if she wanted to.  
“Daryl, I’m pregnant.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *dramatic deep piano music*  
> Aaaaaaaand this is what I've been afraid to post. I'm not 100% sure why, but people HATE baby fics. (If you are one of those people, please just stop reading, don't be a dick. I don't wanna hear about it) I don't know, it just feels like such a natural ending to a lot of Bethyl fics.   
> And if you're not craaaaazy about them, I will say that it's not going to be a big part of the fic. Like eventually it'll be a bigger deal of course, but for the next couple chapters, I'm not gonna lie, they don't really address it. Because they're both stubborn babies and they've got other shit to work on first. You'll see what I mean.  
> I can agree that there are already a lot of baby Dixon fics out there, but I just follow my writer's spirit and this is where it led me. So. I hope you all still enjoy the story!


	17. "Why don't you love me anymore?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yet another shortie. Sorry about that guys :/ might update again tonight to make up for it if I have time for some good writing

The shot went wide, flying off into the distance with only the rustling of leaves to indicate he’d even taken it. The deer had heard her words too, its eyes went wide, and it ran off into the brush the way Daryl wanted to. His mind was racing, but the main emotion was anger.  
He whipped around to fix her with a glare and she looked taken aback.  
“You decide you wanna fuckin talk to me now?” He spit, taking a couple steps closer to her. She backed up a little, like a scared little bunny. “If you were tryin to get my fuckin attention you chose a real shit time. Have fun not eating tonight.”  
The initial fear in her eyes was quickly replaced with a hot anger brimming along her lashes. It seemed like Beth was perpetually crying these days. He was surprised when that little hand of hers, the one that had dug into his shoulders and held him inside of her, came up and slapped him with all her might. He didn’t move, standing resolutely over her even though his cheek burned. It obviously wasn’t enough for her because that feral anger still burned in her eyes. She started pushing him, both hands planted on his chest as a string of curse words leaked from her like her mouth was a broken faucet. Like her admission had broken the floodgates and all the terrible words she was keeping from him were pouring out. She kept trying to shove him over, and he relented only barely, until she had him up against a tree. She twisted her fists in the fabric of his shirt, and he half expected her to deck him. But she released him suddenly, her hands going up to brace the back of her head as she took a couple steps back.   
“Why don’t you love me anymore?” She sobbed, shaking her head. “I’m ready now and you’re fucking gone.”  
He opened his mouth to say something, he had no idea what, but she took off running in the other direction before he got in a single word. He watched her go, that pale blond ponytail swinging from side to side as she stumbled over sticks and ducked under branches. He imagined her in some other reality, running from him again, but with a smile on her lips as he chased after her, trying to close that gap. She had a beautiful smile.  
Daryl shook the vision from his head. He had no idea what he was supposed to be thinking right now, but he was almost certain that wasn’t on the preapproved list. He stalked off in the direction of his arrow, hoping that a little time apart would help them both clear their heads. He nearly laughed at the thought. They’d already had so much time apart, even if they were physically together.   
He wondered if she had been serious. He was firmly stuck in denial, more comfortable believing that she had been angry, and trying to get his attention. But in the back of his head, there was a steadfast voice reminding him that Beth wasn’t the kind of person to fuck around with him that way. After a week of silence, why would she decide to say something like that? To fuck with him, he decided. To get him to look at her, just like those fucking scars.  
He wanted to get angry. He tried to summon that same fury that had welled up in him the moment she’d let those words fall from her lips but it was unreachable. He was met with a swell of guilt. What if she wasn’t fucking around with him? He was sure she hadn’t cut herself to get his attention. Certainly she couldn’t have done this just to get his attention either. But that left him with only one other option. And he wasn’t quite ready to look that storm in the eye right this moment.  
Daryl saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He focused in on it, willing to see any form of distraction. It was a rabbit, visible to him only in brushes of light brown as it darted through the brush. He lifted his crossbow slowly, watching the animal for only a couple moments before he closed in on it. He let the bolt fly. It went straight through the rabbit’s eye, but he didn’t smile triumphantly the way he usually did. Rabbits were too easy, too quick. He was back to thinking about Beth already as he bent to pick up the carcass.   
He had no idea what he was supposed to do, but he was absolutely sure that he had to figure this shit out before he walked back to camp with his tail between his legs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the support guys! I've been so nervous about updating but you guys have been so great. Please keep reading! Keep commenting!   
> In response to some people wanting more updates, I couldn't update this weekend because I went home, but I usually update at least once a day. Sorry, but I'm just too busy to do more than that. In fact, pretty soon I'm going to be moving back home for the summer, and on top of that my parents decided to sell my childhood home and move. So I'm going to be moving twice in the next two months so this fic will probably wither for a while. But chin up! I'll keep coming back if you do!


	18. "Still do"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl and Beth finally do a little bit of talking

Beth was hoping he’d be back by dark. But when the cicadas started up their chirping, she was still alone. She built the fire again, putting all her thoughts into that for a good fifteen minutes before she had to go back to thinking about Daryl.  
It hadn’t been fair of her to ask him why he didn’t love her anymore. She didn’t love him either. But she liked to think that, if he had accepted her apology before, that by now she could have been. She was ready now, to have someone to rely on for more than just companionship.   
Beth was staring up at the sky, trying to get a peek at the stars beyond the trees when she heard him approaching. The sound of crunching leaves released something in her, and when she heard his crossbow drop to the ground, she closed her eyes, a deep breath she didn’t know she had been holding coming from her lips. She didn’t know how scared she had been of him never coming back to her until he was standing right there. She opened her eyes at last, but she didn’t look at him. She look at the fire, pulling her ponytail over her shoulder so she could tug lightly on the little braid in it.  
“Took you long enough,” she said quietly. Her voice was gravelly from underuse and all the crying she’d been doing lately.  
“Yeah well, took me forever to find that damn arrow,” he grumbled, sitting on the other side of the fire. She met his gaze at last over the flames. She used to love how his eyes always seemed to see straight through her, but now it made her stomach turn.  
“Sorry about that,” she cleared her throat. She picked up a stick near her feet, setting just the end of it in the fire to distract herself.  
Daryl was silent for a moment as he compiled his thoughts, but he spoke again after a moment. “I’m sorry I was such a dick to you, when you tried to apologize.”  
“It was a shitty apology,” Beth shook her head and tossed the stick into the fire. “I didn’t even mean it though. I couldn’t even mean a half-assed apology. I just wanted you back.”  
“Why?” Daryl watched her carefully over the fire.  
“You did mean something to me Daryl,” she replied, looking back up at him, “Still do.”  
Daryl felt those same familiar words bubbling up in him. He didn’t know what it was about that little girl, but one look from her just made him fall in love with her all over. She was like one of those pictures where if you looked at it really hard you saw something else. Like the one with a vase or two faces. Daryl had always liked those pictures when he was young.  
He bit it back though. He wasn’t going to say it again. He wasn’t going to get hurt like that again.  
“I wasn’t fucking around with you…” Beth whispered. He half expected her to start sniffling, but her eyes were dry this time. “I really am.”  
“I know…” Daryl paused. “Know you ain’t like that. I was just…”  
Beth stayed silent for a moment. She didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t that she didn’t have anything to say. She had millions of things to say, all pressing on her throat at once. But she just didn’t know which one to pluck out of the bunch.  
“That night you got back,” she said quietly, “With the deer? That night I was talkin to Maggie, and she said she was sorry for whatever it was that happened to me, whatever it was that made me like this.” Beth paused, swallowing hard as she stared into the flames. “I told her it was my daddy but I don’t know if it was. I feel like it musta been a part in me was broken all along”  
Daryl didn’t say anything. Her eyes flickered up to his for only a moment. His gaze was steadfast, his almost black eyes moving over her with a steady precision.  
“You ever feel like that?” He still didn’t say anything and Beth shook her head. “I was really hoping you might talk to me now or somethin.”  
“You were the one not talking,” Daryl stated simply.  
“Cut the elementary school bullshit, Daryl,” Beth replied without any real malice, “I’m done with the whole ‘who’s not talking to who’ shit. We were both doing it.”  
Daryl supposed that was fair. He stayed quiet, watching her watch the flames for a moment before he spoke up. “Yeah I feel like that sometimes,” he said, his voice nearly as gravelly as hers, “Course I do. There’s a whole hell of a lot more wrong with me than there is with you.” Her eyes flew to his. He admired the strong curve of her jaw as she tilted her head slightly and rocked back and forth.  
“That ain’t true,” Beth replied, “I’m the one who’s always running away from anything real.”  
“Usually that’s me,” he countered. He saw a look pass over her face, and despite his better judgement, he said, “Ain’t like that with you though. Never wanted to run from you.” He wasn’t sure if he imagined it, but Daryl thought he saw a small smile grace Beth’s lips. “Sides, looks like you ain’t runnin now.” He added.  
“Ain’t nowhere to run…” Beth said absently, “Can’t run from something inside of you…”  
“Yeah but you told me,” Daryl countered, “That makes it real.”  
“Yeah,” Beth sighed and leaned back against her knapsack to stare at the sky again, “It really really does.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not crazy about this chapter, but I was working through some writer's block. It'll get better I promise. I think it was E.E. Cummings (my favorite poet) that said something like, there's no such thing as writer's block, just good writing and bad writing. My English teacher in high school told me that and it always stuck with me. So I just kept writing and that means this is not great. But I persevered!

It was a slow process, but something like friendship started growing between the two of them again. There were sore spots and scars that they tiptoed around, but it felt more comfortable with time. They didn’t talk much about the recent revelation, letting it fall to the wayside while they worked on building back that trust that they’d had before.  
Daryl was the one who found the cabin. They had been moving all day, staying in a new place every night, and Daryl could tell how antsy it made Beth. Apart from the winter they’d spent on the road, she was used to staying in one place. She was used to having a home.  
He tapped on the door, waiting to hear the familiar sound of a walker falling against it. But he was answered only with silence, so he threw the door open, knife at the ready. There was nothing but dusty furniture inside, and he let the knife fall to his side. He stepped in the door cautiously, surveying the small space through narrowed eyes. There was a narrow bed in one corner, and a table in the other. Daryl ran his hand over the quilt on the bed, watching as a plume of dust swirled through the air like a cloud of smoke.   
“Hey Beth!” Daryl leaned out the door and shouted into the woods. Normally he tried not to be too loud, but they hadn’t even seen a walker or another person in days, and she couldn’t have been too far off. Sure enough, she jogged out from behind a bush in moments.  
Beth stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the cabin, staring at it with wide eyes. “You check for walkers?” she called across the yard of leaves.  
“Nah, I figured it’d be a fun surprise if we found one in the closet later.”  
Daryl felt his heart thump a little harder when something that almost resembled a smile twitched at the corners of her lips. She’d been so morose all the time, he was starting to worry he might not ever see that smile again. But there she was, in his old poncho wrap, ankle deep in leaves with the corners of her mouth betraying the sad look in her eyes. Before he could stop himself, he stepped off of the porch and practically ran to her. She just watched him coming, she didn’t move until he was practically on top of her. And then, all she did was angle her head and let him take her in his arms. It almost reminded him of that first time, how much she had expected every aspect of their first kiss. He paused for only a moment, watching as she closed her eyes, and then he pressed his lips to hers. It was chaste, neither of them moving as if they were afraid they might ruin it.   
Daryl pulled away when he thought he might pass out if he didn’t breathe, but his hand stayed still on the back of her neck. Beth kept her eyes closed, her lips slightly parted.  
“If I tell you I’m still in love with you,” he paused, swallowing the lump in his throat, “Will you promise not to run away this time?”  
“Said I ain’t leavin you alone didn’t I?” she whispered, opening her eyes at last. They fell on his immediately. At any other time, Daryl would have let the abuse and years of neglect trick him into not believing her. But there was something inherently honest about Beth. He might not trust her entirely quite yet, but she had never lied to his face before.  
He stepped away from her awkwardly and cleared his throat. The moment had come out of a place of longing that Daryl had been hiding from Beth for almost two months now. He hadn’t expected it to come on so suddenly, but he was glad it did. He looked down at Beth, her cheeks flushed and her eyes just as blue as ever. She slowly lifted her hand to brush her fingertips over her soft, pink lips. He had never seen her do that, he had only ever seen girl’s do that in movies. She almost looked scared of him, and he found her moment of vulnerability strangely erotic. He wanted to take that pouty pink bottom lip between his teeth while he trapped her against a tree. What felt like half the blood in his body rushed to his cock so fast he felt light-headed.  
Beth must have seen a look cross over his face because she put out a hand to steady him. “You alright?” she sounded concerned, and before he could stop himself he shook her hand off. He cursed himself when a hurt look flickered over her upturned face.  
“M fine,” Daryl grumbled, “C’mon. Let’s set our stuff up then I’ll go look for dinner.” He took off in the direction of the cabin, listening carefully to the crunch of her boots in the leaves as she followed behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A RECONCILIATION (of sorts) AT LAST!  
> I was getting annoyed by them being stubborn, but like I've said before, I just follow the story set before me. They're still going to be stubborn though, because that's how they are. But it's getting better! Just finished chapter 21, and you guys are gonna LOVE it c;  
> I write pretty much all of this to the album Wiped Out! by The Neighborhood, specifically R.I.P. to my Youth (that helps me get into Beth's head), and Daddy Issues. It's a great album, y'all should check it out. This one was written to The Beach, the lyrics are SPOT ON. Check it out.


	20. "Not bad, huh?"

Beth couldn’t help but look up from the sink again, and she caught the same flash of blue eyes as the last fifty or so times, distorted in a way that almost felt right. The mirror was small and warped and dirty, giving her only glimpses, a whole picture if she examined each part of her face piece by piece, but she couldn’t seem but stop looking at it.  
She chastised herself inwardly, plunging her hands back into the lukewarm water. Daryl had been gone for hours trying to track down some kind of animal and Beth was trying to get some laundry done in the meantime. Beth knew he was worried. He didn’t say a thing but she could see that look in his eyes. He was always watching her, probing her for any kind of illness, only stopping short of asking her how she was feeling. He went out looking for meat every night now, and every time he returned with nothing he seemed more and more furious with himself. Beth wanted to tell him that it was fine, that she felt fine, but for some reason that felt like a line she couldn’t cross.   
No, they didn’t talk about it. But Beth could tell that Daryl was worried. She could see the strained look in his eyes, and she could practically hear the words he was holding back. She wasn’t ready to talk about it just yet. For now, she was content with the comfortable silence and his watchful eyes. Before, she had thought that what she wanted more than anything else was for him to talk to her. And while she did like talking to him more, now that everything was on the table she found that it wasn’t the exchange of words she’d been craving, it was the connection. It was weaker than before, but it was back.  
Beth looked up when the door flew open, her wet hand flying to where her knife usually was on her hip. Her heart began to pound when she realized it wasn’t there, but it quieted again as Daryl stepped inside.  
“Scared me,” Beth shook her head at him, but she gave him a little smile to let him know she wasn’t too serious.  
“Sorry,” Daryl gave her a little smile back and she felt her heart jump into her throat. For a milisecond she allowed herself to believe his smile was because of her. But her heart sank back down when he dropped his game bag on the table with a triumphant smile. “Eh?” he grinned at her, “Not bad, huh?”  
“No not bad at all,” Beth replied, keeping her voice light but her face turned away so he wouldn’t see her pursed lips.  
Daryl watched her carefully. He could always tell when Beth was bullshitting him. Like he’d thought to himself before, Beth had never lied to him. Her innate honesty made it impossible for her to keep things hidden. But he wasn’t going to push her to talk to him. Not now.  
Beth was as small as ever, but Daryl felt his throat catch as he noticed how she seemed more...filled out than she used to be. She had always been a wispy little stick, but from behind he could see how much more her hips jutted out, how much she looked like a woman now. They’d been hiking for weeks, her always wrapped in his poncho or wearing a jacket that hid what was going on underneath.   
She turned around suddenly, catching his eyes travelling up and down her body. He cleared his throat and turned away, but not soon enough to see a small smile curl at the edge of her lips.  
“It’s okay…” Beth said softly, her voice breaking the silence. He heard the floor creak as her stockinged feet slid a little closer to him.   
He kept his back to her, just feeling and hearing her come closer and closer to him. When Beth’s hands crept around his middle they stopped at the hem of his worn jeans, and she could feel him shiver under her touch. She took that as encouragement, allowing her hands to explore a little more, until they ghosted over his growing erection. She was about to grasp his member, but he suddenly whirled around. His hands gripped her upper arms so tight she flinched, but she was far more afraid of the sudden, hot fire burning in his eyes. Daryl’s eyes looked black in the low candlelight, but a quick dart of his tongue over his bottom lip told her that he was unsure.  
“It’s okay…” Beth whispered again, and she looked up at him through narrowed eyes. She angled her face towards his like she did earlier, waiting for him to kiss her. That was what always seemed to send him past the point of no return, her waiting for him to kiss her. Like that very first kiss, she let herself relax and relented control of the situation to Daryl.  
“I can’t…” Daryl finally replied, and his grip loosened on her.  
“You can do whatever you want to me Daryl,” She stood on her tiptoes to whisper in his ears, and he bent down a little to meet her. She smiled at how eager he was to drink up her every word.  
He was visibly shaking, but he shook his head. “I can’t start doin this shit with you again.”  
“I’m ready to be with you now Daryl,” Beth replied, her voice rising only slightly, “Let me be what you want.”  
“I wanted to be with you two months ago Beth…” Daryl said quietly, looking like a shy little boy.  
“M sorry….” Beth began to back away from him, but his hand clapped down on the small of her back, crushing her back to him. Her eyes went wide, and he leaned closer to her until their lips were nearly touching.  
“I ain’t sure what’s broken in you girl,” he murmured, “But you gotta promise me you ain’t gonna let it get in the way anymore. Can’t do this one sided thing with you again. Not for a minute.” The last sentence came out in a growl that made Beth’s heart jump wildly. She was dumbstruck, so she just nodded at him. She wasn’t going to let any of that stupid fear stop her anymore. It was just her and Daryl out there, she didn’t have anything to hide behind anymore.  
Besides, they almost seemed to share a secret now, and no matter how much it frightened her, she could also feel it binding them together. It wasn’t like they could tell anyone even if they wanted to, but still, it felt like something that they alone shared.  
“Good,” Daryl hissed, almost angrily at her nod, and the look in his eyes sent a chill up her spine. He pressed his lips to hers so hard it hurt, but she fought back. She pushed back against him and he relented, stepping back until the back of his knees hit the bed. He hooked his arm under her legs and she lept into his arms, that radiant smile he loved so much on her lips. He wanted to throw her on the bed and just ravage her, but at the last second he remembered her condition. He laid her down with a gentleness that made her breath hitch, barely pausing before he knelt on the floor before her. She watched him carefully as he bent over her, almost getting the feeling that he was about to pray to her from the look in his eyes. His hands slipped under her loose white t shirt on each side, running slowly up her sides to pull it over her head. She suddenly felt incredibly exposed, even though he had seen her naked several times before. But she had been noticing a little...growth lately. Luckily, Daryl didn’t even pause before he began biting at her neck, pressing rough kisses down her collar bones to her breasts. She let out a sigh when he took one of her nipples in his mouth, biting down on it more gently than he ever had before. He started working his tongue around it in a way that usually drove her crazy, but now Beth had to stop him.  
“Daryl,” she whispered, and his eyes came up to hers, “Just...ease up.” He gave her a confused look and she felt a blush creep into her cheeks. “They’re...sensitive.”  
A strange look came over his face, and she wished she had just let him do his thing. But he didn’t say anything, just leaned up to kiss her mouth instead. She kissed him back eagerly, wanting to move on from the awkwardness. With her feet she pushed at his jeans, trying to push them off, but his hand clapped over her thigh, stopping her movements as well as her breathing. With no explanation, he pulled away from her and started taking off her own jeans. When she was completely naked, Beth couldn’t help but blush. She was completely exposed and he was completely clothed, but he didn’t even seem to notice. He leaned over her again slowly, placing a gentle kiss between her breasts. He continued placing a trail of kisses down her body, and her breath hitched when he paused over the slight swell of her stomach. She looked down at him, searching for some emotion. Disgust. Fear. Anger. She didn’t know, but she waited for some look to pass over his face. He looked back up at her, maintaining eye contact as he pressed another, lingering kiss there. Beth didn’t know why she felt so embarrassed, but a swell of an emotion something like love washed over her too, mixing with her shame and fear in a way that made her head spin.   
Daryl’s fingers pushing into her brought her out of her reverie. She gasped loudly, her back arching as he circled her clit with his hot, wet tongue. He chuckled at her reaction, the vibrations causing Beth to moan back at him.   
“Mmmm I missed this…” Daryl mutters, his breath hot against her lips as he pulls his fingers out of her. He pauses for only a moment, a devilish smile on his lips before pressing his tongue into her.   
Beth bit back her cries for only a moment before realizing that, this time, nobody was around to hear them. So she let his name fall from her lips, encouraging him until legs were shaking uncontrollably. When he felt like she couldn’t take any more, Daryl stood. He looked down at her as he pulled his own pants off, growing even harder at the sight of her panting, barely able to open those bright blue eyes. When he pushed his boxers down, his erection sprung out almost violently. Beth giggles to herself for only a moment before sitting up quickly. Her mouth went to his cock almost immediately, a strangled noise coming from Daryl’s throat as she pressed her tongue to the bead of precum dripping off his head.   
“Fucking hell girl,” he breathed, and she hummed happily against him. He jerked at the vibrations, shoving himself a little farther inside of her mouth. Beth gagged a little, and he was a little ashamed at how much that turned him on. He gently pushed her off, swearing at the little pouty face she made. He knelt in front of her again, greedily pressing the head of his dick against her entrance.  
“Beth?” he whispered, studying her face.  
“Yeah?”   
“I just…” he swallowed, feeling a little embarrassed, “I dunno. I don’t wanna hurt you, I guess. It ain’t gonna hurt...it, is it?” He stared at her, his heart pounding away in his chest.  
“No,” She whispered, snaking a hand between them to take his cock in her hand. She guided him deftly inside of him, gasping as she took in his full length. “It’s okay…” she whispered again, and lightly pressed her lips against his slightly open ones.  
He let out a loud groan and buried his face in the crook of her neck. She laughed a little at this and he slowly pulled his hips back until only his head was inside of her. She expected him to snap back into her hard, but he kept going slowly, sheathing himself thoroughly in her. He set a pace so slow she felt like she might explode. But when she finally came, it was long and delirious, each one of his thrusts punctuated by her crying his name.   
He picked up the pace a little as she came down from her high, pressing hard into her as he covered her heavy breathing with demanding kisses. She closed her eyes as he put his hand between them to gently circle her clit. It was impossible, how he was bringing her back to the brink so soon afterwards, but she wasn’t complaining.  
“God,” she groaned against his lips, “You’re ridiculous.” He slammed into her in response, and she could tell by how his hips were jerking that he was nearly there. She let herself moan at full volume, urging him on to his own release as she reached her own.   
“Fuck,” Daryl breathed as he let himself spill inside of her. She panicked for only a second before she remembered. His cum would do nothing now.  
“Think you just did,” Beth giggled in response.  
He narrowed his eyes at her, but she only giggled harder. He loved that sound, that twinkle in her beautiful eyes. He pressed another kiss against her lips.  
“Can I kiss you whenever I want now?” he murmured between kisses.  
She smiled, nodding eagerly in response, and he did just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Needless to say I've been missing the smut. But here it is! You'll get more I promise.   
> I'm staying at school for the next couple weekends so I'll be around and writing. But I do have research papers I should be writing. Let's be real though, I'd much rather be writing fanfiction than writing about personification in the work of John Donne. Don't become an English major. You'll want to die.  
> Anyways. I'll try to keep updating everyday but be ready for me to be too busy.


	21. "It was just something that happened"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl finds a little bit of peace with Beth in his arms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I'm trying some new formatting. Pretty please let me know if this is somehow worse.  
> Shoutout to reader, ghostlywhitedirewolf (cool name btw), for making the suggestion. I really hope this helps! I don't want you to have to deal with a migraine just to read my story (though I admire and am flattered by your dedication)

Daryl didn’t sleep that first night. He couldn’t. Beth tried to convince him, begging him to relax and telling him every comfort she can. They put up a circle of twine for a trip wire. They put the cans on the door and then locked it. They had barred the windows. They were safe. But weeks of sleeping outside and watching over Beth had made it impossible for him to sleep at the same time as her. So he let her sleep through the night for the first time in over a month, watching over her carefully.

 

And even though it was just Beth, Daryl felt uncomfortable. This new Beth, curled up and practically purring next to him was foreign. They had never even cuddled, let alone slept in the same bed together. He had half expected her to make him sleep on the floor. But after dinner she had laid down on her side, patting the bed next to her sleepily, as if it was nothing.

 

She snored quietly beside him, and the corner of his mouth twitched up at how cute she looked. This new Beth was different, but he was almost excited by the prospect of getting to know her. He rolled over onto his side, pressing himself to her back experimentally. She stirred, opening one eye as she pulled the covers over her mouth. His hand wound around her waist and he could just barely see the dimples on her cheeks as she pushed back against him. His hand hovered over the slope of her stomach for only a moment before settling against her. She froze, and he almost pulled his hand away, but the tension ebbed and within minutes she was snoring again.

 

The fact that they hadn’t dealt with Beth’s condition had given Daryl an out that he wasn’t sure he was willing to take any more. He wasn’t going to push her to talk about it, but for now he could at least think about it.

 

Happy definitely wasn’t the word. He remembered everything that had come with Judith, all the pain and the loss. But he wasn’t angry or really UNhappy. It was just something that had happened, was going to happen. Daryl was going to be a father, something he never thought he would ever get to be. It certainly wasn’t something he had actively wanted, but now that the reality was here, staring him in the face, he found himself willing to take it on.

 

And if he was honest with himself, he was glad it had been Beth. She had a lot of things wrong with her, a lot of pain that she was yet to deal with. But he had seen how good she was with Judith, and he did love her. Even if he couldn’t say it to her again, he knew he did. He’d just wait for her to love him back this time. At least now she wasn’t pushing him away. This new Beth was actively calling him to her.

 

Daryl wasn’t able to sleep comfortably in the cabin for at least a week, but he found that he had never been such a morning person. He’d eagerly await the first rays of sun each morning like a kid on Christmas. Because when the sun was up, he could press his erection to the soft curve of her ass and grind it against her until she smiled, her eyes still closed. She would mumble things to him, only half awake, that he never understood and roll her hips back against him. He would push her panties down to her ankles the first couple mornings, after that she stopped wearing them to bed, and let his cock fall in the gap between her thighs. He loved the way she would shudder against him as he rocked his hips, pressing the head of his dick against her morning wetness, all the way up to her clit. And when he was covered in her arousal, he would slide into her so easily the word fate came to mind. How could they fit together this perfectly without some sort of supernatural force, the kind of which Daryl had never believed in before.

 

He groaned everytime they came together, wanting her to hear how good she felt. One time, he even bit down on her shoulder, hard enough to bruise, and she whimpered in response. He would pull his hips back slowly, careful not to go to far, and press into her slick heat again. He could hardly help but gasp and moan with each thrust; she was almost impossibly tight around him in this position. But she would cry back to him, his name falling from her lips and her panting mixing with his is the stuffy early morning air. It never took either of them very long.

 

Those mornings it wasn’t anything like the other times. Their first time in the cabin, they had both been full of grief and confusion, and it had been an oasis of comfort for them. But in the mornings, every time he thrust into her and every time she ground back against him, it was about only them, and what they had between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was actually inspired by a piece of fanart that I cannot for the life of me find the name of the artist for. It's basically just Beth and Daryl hugging and her head is on his chest and his face is in her hair and just UGH IT'S SO GOOD I WANNA FIND IT SO YOU GUYS CAN SEE IT TOO.  
> I'll keep looking.  
> But I'm super sorry I haven't updated as much recently. Not gonna get into it, but some really messed up stuff is going down with me right now. And ergggg finals!


	22. "Tuna"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If this is bad I'm so sorry. I wrote it instead of my term paper. I got a lot going on so just, don't expect anything great.

They stayed in the cabin for less than a month. Beth wanted to stay longer, she wanted to make a home there, but Daryl put his foot down. He was beginning to sleeping too comfortably there. He wasn’t as tense as he needed to be to keep them alive. Besides, they were running low on supplies, and they were way too far out in the woods to make runs.

Beth glared at him as she folded their laundry. He chuckled a little to himself at her pouting. 

“Girl, if you don’t stop giving me those looks…” Daryl let his voice trail off, and continued skinning the squirrel he’d caught for the road.

“I just don’t get it,” she sighed, exasperated, “What’s wrong with this place? Why can’t we stay here?”

“Ain’t got enough food,” Daryl replied simply.

“You suddenly can’t hunt no more?” Beth put her hands on her hips, giving him an incredulous look.

“They’re thinnin out,” Daryl looked up at her, pausing before he spoke again. “Sides, you’re pregnant.”

Beth froze, almost looking like a doll as she hovered over the pile of clothes on the bed. Her eyes flickered up to meet his, and he held them, waiting for her to say something.

“Yeah…” she said quietly, slowly going back to the folding, “So?”

“Ain’t you never had cravings?” Daryl pressed on, “My ma used to make fun’a me all the time. Said she ate pigs feet every day until I was born.” His heart falters a bit when a little smile twitches at the corners of her lips. “We’ll find another place,” He said, turning his attention back to his work, “Promise.”

Beth didn’t say anything, but those words caused her stomach to twist. She wanted to tell him to stop, that he couldn’t promise anything. But she knew he was trying to make her feel better, and she wasn’t going to throw that back in his face. He was trying, which was more than she could say for herself.

At noon, Daryl took down the cans and attached them to his now full pack. Beth mosied out the door behind him, patting the door one last time before she stepped off the porch. They walked for several hours, saying nothing until they reached the road. Beth felt heat rise in her cheeks as she thought about the last time they had been on the road. It somehow felt like it had been forever since then, but it also felt like he’d been dragging her through the woods by her wrist just yesterday. She gripped her own wrist subconsciously, feeling the slightly raised scars there as she thought about that day. She had known then. She had known she was pregnant since before the prison fell. Not long before, maybe a day or two, but she had known. She thought of herself, how scared she was but how she stayed stubborn in the face of it all instead of reaching out to Daryl. She didn’t know why she’d been so scared of this. They weren’t in love or anything, but they were close. She spent every night tucked against his chest and he’d kiss her every morning, no matter how bad her breath was. That might have been to get her to let him slip his cock in her, but still. It was gentle, a kind of mutual understanding, not nearly as scary as she’d made it out to be in her head.

She turned to him, seeing only a silhouette as the sun began to set on the other side of him. 

“Tuna,” Beth said out of nowhere, and Daryl turned to look at her, startled.

“What?”

“I been cravin tuna,” she shook her head at how silly it was, “When I was lil my mama always made me and Maggie and Shaun tuna melts on the stove when it was raining.”

Daryl watched Beth carefully. She was lost in a memory, a sad smile on her face. He reached out and took her hand, and she smiled up at him.

“I’ll get you some,” he mumbled, a little embarrassed by how cutesie the moment was, and pulled her along as he started walking again.

“I don’t miss Maggie,” she said suddenly, and he looked over at her. She looked up at him, a surprisingly calm look in her big blue eyes. “I’m takin that as a sign. I miss my mama. I miss Shaun. I even miss daddy.” She paused, staring into the distance as she mosied along beside him. “Don’t miss Maggie though. I’m just hopin that means she ain’t dead. Like somehow I know.”

“‘S as good a way as any to know,” Daryl replied, and squeezed her hand a little. She smiled to herself, blushing a little at his little display of affection. But her happiness was cut short by the groaning of walkers, and she felt Daryl stiffen beside her.

“Shit…” he breathed, and she turned to look in the same direction as him. Behind them was a whole herd of walkers, far too big for them to take down on their own. They both stared for a moment, the comfort of the last month blinding them temporarily. But Daryl, of course it was Daryl, came to life first, and started tugging on her hand. “C’mon,” he said gruffly, and she did as he said. 

Beth could normally run faster than anyone she’d ever met, but something seemed to make it impossible for her to move quickly. She wasn’t very far along at all, but it almost felt as if she was running through water. But she managed to make it to the car Daryl was pounding on furiously only minutes after he did.

“Goddam it!” Daryl jammed his knife under the trunk again, sweating with the effort of trying to pry it open. It finally relented, and he helped her get in. He climbed in after her and yanked the trunk down over them.

Within minutes the groans of the dead surrounded them and a heavy fog of humidity seemed to descend on them. Beth wiped her forehead, then reached out to wipe Daryl’s knowing that he had to be sweating like crazy just from holding the trunk closed. He stared at her through the dark, and on impulse she leaned forward to press a quick kiss against his lips.

She wasn’t sure what it was, but she suddenly felt like she loved him. It was like a switch had flipped, just watching him spring to action to defend her. Maybe it was the fear of death or maybe it had been there all along, but she was certain of it. 

She wanted to tap him on the arm and somehow alert him to the revelation. She knew she couldn’t say it out loud because the walkers would pry the trunk open within seconds, but maybe she would have mouthed the words. But a walker bumped against the roof at that exact moment, and Beth had to clap a hand over her mouth to keep a cry of fear from escaping. 

When the fear ebbed a little, she realized that her other hand had gone to the swell of her stomach, and she moved it like it was on fire. She stared down at that little bump, and felt tears gathering in her eyes. She had never been so scared in her life, not even when she found out she was pregnant. The realization that she was afraid FOR her unborn child, not just of it, mixed with her fear of the walkers outside, and it was all she could do to hold back her sobs. She let her head fall against the floor of the trunk, closing her eyes as if she could shut out the world around her as she pressed her hand against her stomach again. She stayed that way, slipping in and out of crying fits until they could see rays of sunlight peeking under the trunk. Daryl released it at last, groaning as he cradled the arm that had held it down all night. He looked over at her just in time to see her lunge at him. She kissed him furiously as she straddled his lap, and after the initial surprise wore off, he kissed her back, pushing them both into a sitting position.

“Wha’s that for?” Daryl breathed when she finally released him.

“I was so scared,” Beth sobbed, and she buried her face in the crook of his neck.

“I got you Beth,” he whispered into her hair, and he held her until her tears subsided at last, not knowing what it was that she really feared.


	23. "Not unless we found you a sombrero"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl and Beth on the road

Beth climbed on the bike, despite Daryl’s weak groans of protest.

“Get offa that thing right now girl,” he growled at her, and she smiled devilishly at him in defiance as the grabbed the handlebars.

“C’mon Dary,” she teased, pronouncing his name like dairy in the way she knew drove him crazy, “Get on behind me. We can be a zombie-killing-crime-fighting couple like in the TV shows.” She tossed her ponytail over her shoulder flamboyantly, and pouted her lips to give him a taste of what it would look like.

“I can’t even look at you,” Daryl sighed, but a smile was on his lips as he covered his eyes.

The bike was pepto-bismol pink, and definitely could not be considered a motorcycle. A scooter or a vespa maybe, but it barely supported Beth, and she wasn’t even that big yet. It had been a week and half since the trunk incident, and Daryl was just happy to see Beth smiling again.

“But it’s so you!” Beth cried, pretending to rev the engine with the handlebars, even though it wasn’t that type of bike. “Seriously though, we should see if this thing runs.”

“What for?” Daryl stared into his bag, searching for a water bottle.

“For ridin,” Beth looked around for the ignition, and was hardly surprised when the keys were nowhere to be seen, “Duh.”

“I ain’t ridin that thing and neither are you,” Daryl gave her a pointed look.

“You don’t tell me what to do old man.”

“‘M fairly certain you ain’t supposed to ride a bike when you’re pregnant,” Daryl replied experimentally, and he carefully watched her reaction. But Beth barely even seemed to notice he had said it, a smile still plastered on her face. 

“Fine,” she dismounted with a fake pout, “You win. But you’re still old.”

“You’re the one who wanted to sleep with me so bad in the first place,” Daryl replied, handing her his water bottle as they moved on from the bike.

“What a horrible mistake!” Beth cried melodramatically, and she let out a laugh that resonated through Daryl’s chest. He didn’t know what was up with her, but she had been so...touchy, lately. She was always looking at him and teasing him, and she had initiated their hand holding way more than usual. He wasn’t complaining, it was just a little surprising.

“Yeah,” he chuckled, “Shackin up with a guy twice your age mighta been a bad move.”

“Hey,” she said, suddenly serious as she took his hand, “I was just kidding.”

“I know,” he replied, squeezing her hand, then added, “Bethany.”

She glared at him, but a smile soon won over. Daryl loved her smile more than almost anything in the world. Whether it was a soft, slow curl of her lips or an open mouthed, gut-busting laugh, he found her utterly entrancing when she smiled. He decided to press a little further, hoping that her good mood would lend to a good discussion.

“You thought about any names or anythin?” he said evenly, trying not to reveal how nervous he was about her response.

“No,” she shook her head. Normally she would have avoided it entirely, but now only a small, flinching look of pain crossed over her features. “Not Bethany,” she piped up after a moment, and he looked at her in surprise. She gave him a little smile before she resumed staring at the ground.

“Herschel?” Daryl said quietly, but instantly regretted it. Surely that had been too far.

She was quiet for a moment, obviously pained by the memory, but she looked up at him after a moment. “Nah,” she shook her head, her blue eyes wide, “Gotta be a name all its own. Don’t want it carryin around a ghost all the time.”

She started walking again, tugging a little on Daryl’s hand as she went. He fell in step beside her, knowing by the look on her face that it was time to stop pushing her. 

“Like you in that…” he said after a moment, and tugged on his poncho that she was wearing.

“Yeah?” she smiled, “I just couldn’t stand to see you wearin it no more. Not unless we found you a sombrero.”

Daryl scoffed at that and she laughed again. He pushed her gently with his shoulder, and she pushed him back.

“I really hope we find a car soon,” Beth whined, “My feet are killing me.”

Sure enough, they spent that night on the floor of a van. It didn’t run, of course, but Daryl teased her that he had found them a car after all.

She lay on her side, watching him making new bolts with his knife and a stick. The van was small, and he was less than a foot away from her. 

“We can name it after your mom if you really want,” Beth looked up at him, “Or your brother.”

He stared back at her for a moment. Her hand rested over the little bump, and he wondered where all this comfort had suddenly come from. Two weeks ago she had been mortified by him just saying the words, “you’re pregnant”.

“Nah,” he replied, slowly taking another thin slice of wood from the stick he was working on. “You were right. Don’t wanna look at our kid and think about the past.”

“I do tend to be right,” she said with a small smile, and she closed her eyes.

“Yeah whatever,” he smiled to himself. An idea came to him, and he set down his work. Daryl knelt down at Beth’s feet and she opened one eye to give him a confused look. He took off one of her boots, then the other, setting them almost lovingly to the side. She closed her eyes again, shoulders slumping as she relaxed. 

He felt like a chump, rubbing Beth’s feet, and he could almost hear Merle teasing him from the afterlife. You’re fuckin whipped Darylina! But he shook away his reservations. It was just him and Beth in this van, and he was comfortable with her. She was hardly going to make fun of him. She let out a low groan reminiscent of the ones he made during sex, and Daryl chuckled to himself. 

“Daryl?”

He looked up at her, still rubbing slow circles on her feet. Her eyes were open now, shining with tears that caused his heart to drop. It wasn’t hard to make Beth cry these days, but he still didn’t like seeing it.

“Yeah?” he replied, trying not to seem nervous. 

She swallowed hard, her eyes straying to the roof for a moment before coming back to his.

“I love you too…” she whispered, her voice broken and quiet but still there. “Shoulda just said that back that first time.”

Daryl froze. She looked back at him expectantly. “Don’t,” he shook his head, “If you don’t mean it, don’t-”

“I do Daryl,” she insisted, setting her jaw so she could look strong despite the mist in her eyes.

Daryl just watched her for a moment. “Glad you didn’t just say it back the first time…” he muttered, and began rubbing her feet again.

“What?” Beth sat up a little, “After all that fuss you tell me you didn’t even want me to say it back?”

“I just mean…” Daryl paused thoughtfully, “I dunno. You wouldn’t have meant it then.”

Beth didn’t say anything back, but she laid back down, seeming satisfied with this answer.

“I love you too,” Daryl said, smiling a little to himself, “In case you didn’t already know.”

“I suspected as much,” Beth replied, closing her eyes again, “Now keep rubbing  
Man-slave.”

Daryl chuckled, ducking his head so she wouldn’t be able to see the wide grin spreading across his face, despite the fact that her eyes were closed. He was suddenly struck by how different his life had become, almost overnight. He waited to hear Merle’s voice in his head, waited for his memories to somehow spoil this uncharacteristic happiness. But all he could feel was the warmth of Beth’s callused feet in his hands. All he could see was the dimpled smile on her lips. All he could hear was her soft breathing, evening out as she drifted off to sleep. 

He could do this. He could be happy. Bad memories be damned, Beth Greene was his cure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If any of you are wondering what poncho I'm talking about, go back to season three. He wears it in like every episode, and I am OBSESSED with it. He's just so cute! I watched an interview with Norman Reedus once and he said he wore the poncho because he couldn't actually fire bolts on the set so he would dry fire the crossbow and then hide the bolt in his poncho. They should have had him wear it forever if you ask me because it was hilarious.


	24. "Where we goin?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter but here is an update at last!

Beth sat crosslegged in the driver’s seat, watching the sun come up through the grimy windshield of the van. Daryl was still asleep in the back, despite his usual early-bird ways. She listened to his breath behind her, a small smile overcoming her face at the thought of what had happened the night before. 

She loved Daryl Dixon. She loved him. She never got tired of thinking about it in her head. She regretted her treatment of him more than anything, more than not caring about whether or not he wore a condom. 

Beth closed her eyes for a moment and reached behind her head to take her ponytail down. She thought about the time before all this, when the idea of going more than a day without a shower would have mortified her, as she ran her fingers through her hair. They had rinsed off every once and a while when they found a creek, but it had been at least a month since she had washed her hair. She felt like she could barely remember what it was like to be clean. She let her head fall back against the seat as she twisted a piece of her hair between her index and thumb. 

She looked back Daryl, smiling at how calm he looked, his mouth slightly agape. An idea struck her, and she climbed over the seat and into the back where he lay. She nudged him gently, and his eyes opened instantly, a habit he had developed from all their time on the road and in the woods. She almost felt bad about waking him, but something told her he wouldn’t mind. She pressed her hand gently against his morning wood, relishing the gentle shiver that went through him as he closed his eyes again.

“Girl…” he sighed sleepily, almost grumpily, but did nothing to stop her.

“Shush,” she scolded, biting down on her bottom lip with a smile.

She unzipped his pants and took his erection out from under his boxers. He let out a soft grunt as she wrapped her whole hand around the shaft, and she couldn’t hold back a small giggle. Beth loved making him feel good, loved hearing all the little noises he made. Before, sex had been all about her. It felt good to almost be of service to Daryl. 

She leaned over his midsection, and pressed a teasing kiss against the head of his cock. His hands went into her hair in response, digging in all the way to her scalp in a way that just edged the line of pain. Daryl pushed his hand through her tangled hair, pushing it out of her face so he could watch as she took his dick in her mouth. He groaned and bit down on his tongue, the tangy taste of blood filling his mouth as Beth’s sucked gently on his head. 

She started slowly, only using her mouth as she gently bobbed on and off of him. But after several moments when Daryl’s breathing picked up, she brought her hand up to his shaft, rubbing him off as she flicked her tongue over his steady flow of precum. He swore aloud, followed by a breathless string of BethBethBeths that made her heart pound a little harder. She worked faster, harder, until he came forcefully against the roof of her mouth. 

Beth leaned up and away from his softening dick, and wiped the corner of her mouth to hide her triumphant smile.

“Where…” Daryl gasped, out of breath, “Where the hell did that come from?”

Beth just shrugged in response, trying to seem nonchalant. He sat up and pulled her in for a kiss. She kissed him back for several moments before pulling away.

“We should go Dary,” she whispered.

“You don’t want none from me?” Daryl replied, and he set to pressing hot, open mouthed kisses against her throat. She was tempted, and she closed her eyes as she thought about that unshaven scruff against her clit.

“Naw,” she said at last, pushing him away, “Ain’t like I wanted to start nothin. Just wanted to make you feel good.”

“Fine,” Daryl replied, and pressed another quick kiss on her lips this time. “I owe you though.”

Beth smiled to herself as he stood up as much as he could in the back of the van. He swung the door open unceremoniously and threw his crossbow into its familiar position across his back. She watched him for a moment as he took several lazy steps out into the road, then placed a hand on each hip. He might have been quite a bit older than her but he was still extremely fit in a way that made her sweat despite the burgeoning winter. She grabbed her pack and followed him out into the road. She laced her fingers with his in a way that was more habit than anything now, and they set off down the road again.

They walked for several hours before Beth felt Daryl’s hand stiffen in hers, and he came to an abrupt halt. 

“What is it?” Beth asked, looking back at where he stood.

Daryl didn’t answer. He looked lost in thought, and she followed his intense stare to a small trailer park community just off the highway. There was a dilapidated yellow house with a caved in roof and a set of swings in the midst of weed ridden concrete slabs. She looked back at Daryl for a moment before lightly tugging on his hand.

“C’mon…” she said quietly.

“Where we goin Beth?” Daryl asked suddenly, his eyes not moving from the sad swing set.

“I dunno,” she shrugged, “Jus lookin around I guess.”

“For the others?” He looked at her suddenly, his eyes clouding over in a way that turned her stomach.

“I guess…” Beth paused, then spoke again, “‘M lookin for someplace safe I guess.”

“Hmm,” he grunted lightly in response and let go of her hand. He stared at the ground for a moment and then set off towards the trailer park.

“Where you goin?” Beth called after him.

“Lookin for somethin,” he replied tritely as he pushed a wire fence out of the way. She let out a heavy sigh before following him through the knee-length brush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry it's been so long! I got so caught up in finals, but I managed to keep my GPA above a 3.5 so I get to keep my scholarship! Yayyyyyy! Moving has been way harder than I thought so I haven't written a single thing in over a week. I try to keep a couple chapters ahead of my updates but now I'm only one ahead. My mom's up my ass about getting a SECOND job and I'm moving AGAIN and erggggg so I might keep being late with updates. I'm really sorry guys :c But the next chapter was one of my favorites to write and I have some really interesting stuff planned for Daryl and Beth. I've had writer's block for weeks but we're coming up on stuff that I've actually thought about so it's going to get better really soon!


	25. "I'm glad."

Daryl had almost been surprised at how long it took him to realize where they were. Then, with a sense of bitterness so strong he could almost taste it, he realized it was because he’d hardly ever left the sorry lot. It was the swing set that got him. That rusty hunk of metal that had stood the test of time against the odds that had caught his attention and brought him back to this place. Brought him home. 

Somewhere in the back of his mind Daryl knew how unfair he was being to Beth as he stalked through the cracked streets of the community. He could hear her struggling to keep up with him, the clacking of those cowboy boots farther away than he usually liked. She moved so slowly these days that nearly every moment he spent filled with panic that something like that night with the trunk would happen again and she wouldn’t be able to get to safety. She was right. They needed to find somewhere safe. But nothing in the world was safe now. Woodbury had been about as safe as it gets and it was run by a complete lunatic. Daryl ground his teeth down until he saw crackles at the edge of his vision as he rounded the last corner.

And then he was there. Beth was huffing and out of breath as she came up beside him but he hardly even noticed. He just stood, staring at the little white trailer with the orange streaks of rust on the side.

“Daryl,” Beth wheezed, and he finally looked at her. Something in his mind clicked back on and he went to her side, his heart seizing with worry. But she just pointed past him, and he turned to see a walker stumbling towards them. He took it out quickly and scanned the horizon for more. He was surprised this place wasn’t crawling; most people had been too poor to pack up and leave when Merle and Daryl did. But he didn’t smell the oppressive stench that usually followed large groups of them, didn’t hear the intermittent moans.

He turned back to Beth and she seemed to have recovered a little. She stood on the sidewalk, her hands pressed against her back in a way that made her belly poke out even under the poncho. Her hair was still loose, cascading down her back, and for a moment, looking at her, he just wanted to get out of there. He wanted to get Beth far from this place. He shouldn’t have brought her here at all. But now he was here, staring at his own personal hell with a god damn blonde angel at his side.

“You lived here?” she said at last. He expected a tone of disgust or sympathy, but her voice was utterly unassuming, as if she was asking him for the time.

“Yeah.”

She took the first steps towards the door as if she could somehow tell he felt a great sense of dread just looking at the place. Her hand went to her hip, ghosting over the spot where her knife would have been before it dropped to her side again. 

“Hey,” he called out to her, and when she turned he tossed her his knife. She unsheathed it and held it at the ready as she approached the door. She rapped on it a couple times but no noises came from within. Daryl felt lightheaded and his heart pounded as she opened the door, almost expecting his father to be standing there, a fifth in one hand and the other raised to strike her. But the doorway was empty, and she stepped inside of his childhood home. He followed her, trying not to show how shaky he felt as she checked the few rooms for walkers.

“All clear,” she said awkwardly, placing his knife on her belt and avoiding eye contact with him. 

He looked around and was surprised by how untouched it all was. Beth probably thought the place had been ransacked by the strange, almost frightening stains all over the floor and the shattered TV. But to Daryl it looked exactly the same. He cleared his throat and walked past her, into the room that he and Merle had shared as teenagers, but that became his when their father died. He had practically run all the way here, full of determination, but now as he stared at the peeling paint and the mattress on the filthy ground, he had no idea why he had come here. Daryl moved to sit down on the end of his old bed, watching as a plume of dust swirled into the air. 

Beth stood uncomfortably in the doorway, watching him as if waiting for him to hulk out. They simply stared at eachother for a moment. A silent understanding seemed to pass between them, the way it always did these days.

“‘M glad,” Daryl said suddenly, breaking eye contact with Beth to stare at the ground in front of him. 

“What?”

“I’m glad,” Daryl said more firmly, and he paused for a moment before letting loose the words that were clawing at his throat, “Glad the dead started walkin. Glad I got out of this place. Glad I lost Merle. ‘M glad the world went to hell.” He looked up to see Beth still just watching him, her face so expressionless it almost made him furious. He wanted her to get angry, to be disgusted. Here she was, faced with this horrible hideous home and she was no doubt comparing it to her own with disdain. Here she was, listening to him be glad that this horrible thing happened, a thing that killed her family and tore her away from everything she’d ever known. But she just looked down at him with those wide blue eyes, so understanding and patient that it felt almost frightening to him.

“Y’hear me girl?” he said after a moment of silence. His voice cracked and he wanted to scream.

“Yeah,” Beth whispered so quietly he almost couldn’t hear her, “I heard you.”

“Said I’m glad,” Daryl clenched his fist. “Glad my whole fuckin family is dead. Glad I ruined your life.”

He felt the mattress dip as she sat down behind him. She pulled off his jacket first, less than gracefully, and tossed it to the side. He wanted to asked her what she thought she was doing, felt the words sitting on his lips, but he said nothing as she peeled off his angel wings vest. She paused and pressed both hands against his shoulder blades, and he could feel the cold of the outside world on her hands through his shirt. He wanted to stop her, wanted to push her away again. But he stood still, feeling like he was the deer this time, and Beth was the hunter staring down the length of a bolt at him.

“Don’t blame you…” she said quietly, “Ain’t never been glad this happened but I understand. Sometimes I’m jus glad things changed. Glad I ain’t gonna go to college and marry Jimmy and live on a farm the rest’a my life. Wish it had changed a different way. Sometimes I feel guilty for it, cause I lost my mama and my brother and…” she stopped and he could hear her swallow. “And my dad. But all the same I didn’t wan all those things and now...”

Daryl felt a completely unwarranted tear roll down his cheek and realized for the first time that he had been crying. He didn’t remember the last time he had cried. He didn’t wipe it away, instead, he set his hands to work unbuttoning his flannel shirt. He shrugged it off silently, and waited to hear Beth gasp. But she stayed silent.

When those cold, delicate hands pressed against his back he shivered, but not because of the cold. 

“I ain’t never let nobody touch ‘em before,” Daryl said at last, breaking the silence, “Never really let no one see ‘em on purpose neither.”

“I guess I’d have to drink for that one,” Beth sighed, “I let people see my scars all the time.”

“What?” Daryl twisted to look at her.

“I ain’t never,” she stated simply, then when he remained silent, “It’s a drinking game my friends used to play. Someone says ‘I ain’t never’ and then something they ain’t done and if you done it you gotta drink.”

“I ain’t never needed a game to get drunk,” Daryl shook his head. 

“I ain’t never been drunk,” Beth replied.

“Really?” he looked at her in disbelief, somehow forgetting that his back was bare in the moment they were sharing.

“Daddy was a drunk,” she replied simply, but he could see it pained her to talk about her father. She looked back up at him for a moment, her blue eyes innocently wide, before saying, “I guess the same could be said for you though.”

Her eyes fell to his scars again and he watched her examine them. “It ain’t never stopped me,” he said quietly, “Like father like son.”

“Stop that,” Beth said in a voice so stern it surprised him. Her eyes flickered up to his briefly, and there was pure poison in them. “You ain’t like him.”

“How you know?” Daryl shot back, “You ain’t never met ‘im. You don’t know what he was like.”

“I know what you’re like,” She replied without a hint of uncertainty, “Know that you ain’t gonna be like that with our baby.” She held up his shirt for him, and he shrugged it back on. “You afraid of that?” she asked suddenly. “You afraid you’ll do that to him?”

Daryl just stared at her in that familiar way. The way that said everything that he wasn’t sure he would be able to say aloud. The way that said he’d thought of almost nothing else since the moment she’d blurted out that she was pregnant. Her eyes rolled over his face before she wrapped her arms around him from him behind, so tightly it almost hurt. She pressed her cheek to his shoulder and he couldn’t help but start crying all over again. He didn’t hide it from Beth, he let his shoulders shake as he leaned back into her embrace.

“You ain’t ruined my life Daryl Dixon,” she whispered, and despite all the demons baying in his mind, his trust in Beth Greene didn’t waver.


	26. "I love you jackass"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bethyl talks it out over a lovely meal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHAT'S THIS??? An update??? Oh my god things have been crazy. I have two jobs now so I work 60 hours a week. Being an adult is horrible. I literally have not updated in almost three months. What the fuck. Sorry guys :c

Beth leaned back, placing her elbows on the top step as she watched the sun finally dip below the horizon. Daryl leaned over the fire he had made in the front yard, and she smiled a little at his soft cursing. 

Some part of her had worried that he might not recover. She’d never seen him cry before. He had seen her cry more times than she cared to admit, but it wasn’t until she had held him as a snotty, shaking mess, that it had even occurred to her that Daryl Dixon COULD cry. He was always so stoic, that when he broke down she worried that he would never be able to pull himself together again. Maggie had always been strong and stoic, but Beth had seen her fall apart and pull herself back together countless times. She knew Maggie could do it, but she hadn’t been certain about Daryl Dixon. She should have known he would have no problem shaking it off. He was the toughest son of a bitch she’d ever met.

Now he was making them dinner. She had tried to help but he shooed her away. She wasn’t complaining about the lack of work, but he clearly had no idea what he was doing. He could cook a squirrel in the blink of an eye, but whatever it was that he was working on over there clearly required more finesse than he possessed.

He approached her at last, plate in hand, and she couldn’t help but think of that first time he had spoken to her over a plate of deer meat. It had only been six months since then, but Beth felt like a completely different person. When she had first read The Grapes of Wrath, she had thought Rosasharn was a complete idiot, and that her whole “knowing smile” thing was making far too big a deal out of motherhood. But now that she was here, with her own little bump, a knowing smile graced her lips, and she could admit that she felt somehow wiser. She felt like a fool for accidentally getting pregnant of course, but overall she felt like she knew something about the world that no one else did. 

“Ain’t the best you probably ever had…” Daryl mumbled, handing her a cracked plate with what looked like a black square in the middle, “But there’s a tuna melt in there under all the burnt stuff.”

“What?” Beth asked in surprise. She grinned at him, “Where on earth did you find bread and cheese?”

“Saltines and spray cheese,” he sighed as he lowered himself onto the seat next to her, “I oughtta start a redneck cooking show.”

Beth took a bite, trying very hard not to show her trepidation. The cheese was burning hot as it squeezed out from between the burnt crackers onto her hand, and it tasted a little like ash, but all the same it took her back. Back to before all of this, to a time when Daryl Dixon was suffering and she was happier than ever.

“Is it any good?” Daryl asked, and she turned to look at him. The look of eagerness in his eyes gave her heart a squeeze, and she grinned back at him.

“You’re gonna be the next Rachel Ray,” she teased, “Even got the whole first and last name startin with the same letter thing goin for you.”

He chuckled to himself and bumped into her shoulder playfully with his. After a moment of silent chewing, Daryl spoke up again.

“You said him,” he said abruptly, not looking at her.

“What?”

“You were talking about...it,” he paused, turning over his own tuna melt in his hands, “And you called it a him.”

Beth’s heart faltered a little. She hadn’t thought about it, hadn’t even remembered saying it until he pointed it out. “Yeah I guess,” she said lamely, unsure of what else to say.

“You think it’s a boy?” he peered over at her cautiously. She knew he was expecting her to fall into a puddle of tears or go into a stony silence. But she just swallowed back the echoes of fear, and turned to face him.

“Never really thought about it,” she paused thoughtfully, “I guess when I think about it though...I imagine it as a boy.”

Daryl just nodded in response. He was as unfamiliar with this territory as she was.

“Always thought it’d be Maggie,” Beth sighed, her breath turning into little clouds in the darkening night sky, “Thought she and Glenn’d have a baby. That we’d stay at the prison and she’d raise her kids there. She always wanted about forty or so.” She smiled to herself at the memory of her sister playing that silly game that little girls play where you find out how many kids you were going to have. “Thought daddy’d get to see ‘em grow up, get to be a grandfather to ‘em.” 

Beth fell silent and stared up at the stars. Her hand went to her now slightly bulging stomach, and she could feel Daryl’s eyes watching her. She wondered if that silent understanding that always passed between them was somehow conveying to him the rest of what she felt, the rest of the words that she couldn’t manage to choke out. There had been problems between her and her father in the past, but when he died things had been good. They would never be perfect, not after all those years, but when she only looked at the present, she could almost imagine that she had with Herschel what Maggie had. She had worried about telling him she was pregnant, worried about disappointing him, but if she had known that within the week he would be dead, she would have told him immediately. He died without knowing that he was going to be a grandfather, without ever being given a chance to be to her child what he couldn’t be for her.

“I shoulda…” Daryl began, leaning back fully against the stair behind him. Beth waited for him to continue but he stayed quiet, both of them staring up at the sky.

“Shoulda what?” she asked at last, looking at him over her shoulder.

“I dunno…” Daryl didn’t return her stare, and he looked uncomfortable, “Your dad...maybe I coulda done somethin…maybe if I hadn’t given up....”

Beth watched him, staying completely silent until he met her eyes at last. Her eyes burned with not blinking and holding back tears but she remained stoic, unable to stop herself from thinking of what Maggie would do.

“Y’ain’t responsible for everything you know,” she finally said after a moment, “Ain’t your fault that lil girl went missin. I remember the look on your face when she came outta the barn. After my mom,” her throat burned and she paused for only a second, “I dunno why you feel like you gotta be Atlas holdin the whole damn world on your back, but it ain’t your fault. Didn’t do nothin to get my daddy killed. Didn’t ruin my life neither, so you can cross that offa your list of things to be glad about.”

Daryl didn’t say anything back, but the look on his face told her that he needed her. Daryl Dixon would never say it out loud, but every now and then a look akin to a flinch would cross his lips and she could almost see the scared little boy beneath, desperate for a loving touch. She leaned back until she was level with him, and let her head fall against his shoulder.

“Y’ promise?” he said suddenly.

“Promise what?”

“That I ain’t ruinin your life.”

“Ain’t like I wanted to get pregnant,” Beth sighed, “But it’s just as much your fault as it is mine.”

“Yeah but it coulda been Jimmy,” Daryl replied, “Or Zach. Not some old, dumb hick with a shitload of garbage, draggin you across the goddam state.”

“Hey,” Beth sat up to look him in the eye, “You really think I’d rather have some teenage dumbass’ kid than yours?”

Daryl didn’t reply, but he let out a low, dark chuckle that Beth could tell was masking a whole world of pain. He shook his head and started to stand, but Beth caught him by the elbow.

“I love you, jackass…” she said quietly. She felt just as uncomfortable this time as she had the last time she’d said it. Beth wasn’t used to this, wasn’t used to letting someone see the parts of her that were raw and bleeding.

His hand went to the back of her neck and he pulled her in for a gentle kiss. She felt a heat rise in her cheeks but she kissed him back, ignoring all the warning signs in her head telling her that she was too close to him. He pulled away, and she could see a flush on his cheeks too.

“We’re like a- what did you call it?” she began teasingly, pretending not to remember what he had once shouted at her and Zach, “Like a goddam romance novel?”  
He kissed her again, a smile on his lips.

“Shut up girl,” he replied with fake malice between kisses, causing her to erupt in a fit of giggles.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? AN UPDATE? Sorry it's been a minute but here I am!  
> Sorry if this is garbage I haven't really worked on this in forever.

The next day Beth and Daryl cautiously swept the rest of the trailer park for provisions. There wasn’t much left behind, as there hadn’t been much in most of these houses to begin with, but Daryl came out of this excursion feeling like he had accomplished something. He didn’t really know what, but it was something.  
Beth thought they had been on the road for months already when they stopped briefly a little over a week later. Daryl had wanted to keep pushing on, but as he stared across the fire at Beth holding back tears as she desperately attempted to removed the boots her ankles had swollen to fill completely, he knew she couldn’t keep going. But they were nowhere near safety, so he resolved to give them two days to recoup. That was it, after that they would have to move again.

 

He crouched in the dark, still close enough to see Beth’s face glowing in the firelight, while he stalked his prey. The squirrel, small but quick, skittered around in the brush for a few moments before stilling in the pale moonlight. It stood up for just a second to sniff the wooded air, but Daryl was quick and shot it before it got a breath in. Just as he bent over the tiny carcass though, he heard the familiar snap of something far larger nearby. He shot to attention and spun around, but he could see nothing in the dark. Then there was a small shuffle behind him, a squeak, unmistakably Beth, and he whipped around again to see a leather clad man pressing a grimy hand to her mouth. Her blue eyes went wide in what he later realized was warning, and he felt the cold steel of a blade on his neck. There was a faint bite, followed by a trickle that he knew was his own blood.

 

“Take whatever you need” Daryl said in a low calculated voice. He knew what they could be after, and prayed it was no more than the three cans of fruit and half a pack of cigarettes they had. “Just leave her alone”

 

“Told y’all it was the little ones that get ya” the man holding Beth sneered “this un can’t be more an 16”

 

Beth let out a muffled cry of indignation, and Daryl knew it was meant to be something along the lines of “I’m 19 asshole!”

 

“Let her go” Daryl tried to keep his voice even but he heard it in his own ears like the snarling of a rabid dog.

 

“Now, now,” a smoother voice with a rich, almost charming Georgian accent chided somewhere in the trees, “He could be a friend, looking out for the little bunny on the road.”

 

“Doubt it,” he replied plainly, and yanked Beth to her feet suddenly, the hand on her mouth now in her hair. She cried out in surprise and pain before biting it down. She didn’t want to give them the satisfaction. With his other hand the man grabbed her poncho to pull it back, revealing the swell of her stomach to the small group of ragged looking men that had begun to step out from behind the trees and into the light of their small fire.

 

“Damn you sick pervert” a younger man chuckled in Daryl’s ear before pulling the knife away. It pressed into his back again, pushing him forward into the small clearing they inhabited.

 

They laughed and whistled raucously, and for the first time Daryl wished a walker would come stumbling upon his camp.

 

“You heard him” Beth cried shrilly, bring the uproar to a halt “just take what ya need an leave us the fuck alone”.

 

“Cmon lil girl, watch yer fuckin language” the smooth voiced man stepped towards her, chewing at a toothpick. Daryl’s eyes roamed him carefully, taking in the telltale leather vest, the chains drooping from coat pocket to jeans pocket. He was clearly their leader, judging by not just his patches but his slow, meaningful gate.

 

“Looks like we got ourselves a genuine Georgia angel” the guy holding Daryl called out, and he roughly tore Daryl’s vest from his shoulders to show the group.  
The let out a chorus of disapproving remarks, and every moment Daryl became more sure that this would not end well for him and Beth.

 

He locked eyes with her, and to his surprise she didn’t look afraid. She was boiling with anger, and this caused him to straighten up and rekindle his resolve.  
“What do you want from us?”

 

“Oh just you wait” the man holding Beth grinned wickedly, and opened his mouth to say more before their leader stopped him.

 

“Now hold on...” he said like he was thinking hard, staring hard at Daryl as he took a few steps towards him, “where’s the bow?”

 

“Dropped it” Daryl replied gruffly, and when their leader nodded his head in the direction they came from, two of the men scrambled through the brush in search of it. They brought it before him within moments and he turned it over in his hands.

 

“You’re a bowman...” he looked up at Daryl with a look that said he didn’t expect an answer, “I like bowman. These days everybody got a gun. Coulda been a dentist or a car salesman before. But a Bowman’s a bowman through and through.”

 

They stared long and hard at eachother across the fire before Daryl’s eyes flicked to Beth again.

 

“Hm” he hummed disapprovingly and looked over at her “a bowman with a soft spot I suppose”

 

The clearing was quiet and for the first time that fall Beth noticed the cicadas were gone.

 

“They’re coming with us” he said at last, and smiled before turning to go.

 

“The hell we are!” Beth piped up, and Daryl felt his heart swell with pride and panic.

 

The man swiveled around to fix her with a glare before drawling “Seems like I just let you off the hook girl. My men wanna do a whole lot worse to you than allow you and your old man to come along with us” he paused, loping pointedly toward her to whisper “I could still let them you know”

 

Daryl couldn’t hear what the man whispered to Beth, but the look of smoldering rage on her face was enough to set his blood ablaze too.  
“Now are you grateful?”

 

She looked about ready to strangle him, but Beth nodded slowly.  
“Good,” he replied curtly before addressing the group “no one touches her”

 

The group let out a chorus of obscenities but he rose his hand to quiet them.   
“Come on y’all,” he smirked, “if I’ve ever seen a man put a claim on a woman” he paused and poked at Beth’s belly before she jerked away in disgust, “it’s like that. Fall in.”  
They wordlessly assembled behind him like a parade of leather, with Beth and Daryl’s handlers holding knives at their back.  
The man that held Beth's arm behind her back stood between them, but Daryl could feel her anger like it was burning straight through him. At least she had been smart enough to quiet down a little, but he knew that she wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I started this story as a freshman in college and now I'm applying for graduation. It's literally been two years since I updated lmao sorry. Not sure how many people are even still reading, I feel like Bethyl is kinda over now that Beth has been dead so long (RIP). But if you are still out there, I love you all thanks for sticking with it! I'm gonna try to update every now and then at least


End file.
